


God giveth and God taketh away

by Dafaquisdisshit, Silvercloud



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Child Abuse, Crack Treated Seriously, Dark Humor, Denial of Feelings, Everyone Needs A Hug, Except Joseph, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, F/M, Forced Shaving, Graphic Torture, Homophobic Language, Humor, Implied/Referenced Torture, Internalized Homophobia, Jacob likes kids, Joseph is a pedophile, Knife Play, M/M, Manipulation, Masturbation, Masturbation in Shower, Mentions of PTSD, Mild Angst, Nancy is a Bitch, Non Consensual Kissing, Non-Consensual Touching, Religious Fanaticism, Torture, Unhealthy Relationships, Unplanned Pregnancy, Unprotected Sex, are they out of character? We stopped being able to tell 30k words ago, attempted child grooming, but not like joseph, everyone is kinda dumb, forgot to add that oops, grievous child endangerment, horny deputies, its very graphic what he wants to do to this kid, no one respects john seed, one reliable deputy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:21:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 24
Words: 69,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25058368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dafaquisdisshit/pseuds/Dafaquisdisshit, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvercloud/pseuds/Silvercloud
Summary: Eva Whitehorse didn't like when Nancy babysat her, especially when she brought a sweaty preacher home. He was weird and got too close. Maybe she should have told her grandpa about that...Or, How Joseph Seed decided that some kid he found was the reincarnation of his dead wife, and that he'd stop at nothing to put a ring on her finger and a baby in her belly.
Relationships: Female Deputy | Judge/Faith Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Jacob Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/John Seed, Jess Black/Male Deputy | Judge, Male Deputy |Judge/Staci Pratt, Sharky Boshaw/Male Deputy | Judge
Comments: 18
Kudos: 109





	1. Worst Babysitter ever

Eva’s Grandpa worked long hours. Twelve hours a day, four days a week. He had to. He was the head of the Sheriff's department. She understood that. When Grandpa _was_ home he would tell her about all the colorful characters that caused trouble for him. But hearing about everyone didn’t make up for the fact she was still stuck. Not enough kids to bother building a school. So here she was home schooled. The only other kid her age was dead for crying out loud. So much for making friends. The whole county was made up of adults who wouldn't understand. Probably wouldn’t even talk to her. I mean, what business does a strange adult have talking with someone else’s kid?

Whenever Grandpa was at work, which again was most of the time, he usually left Ms. Nancy to watch her. An older lady with beehive hair and librarian glasses, her whole getup was cartoonish. Like she stepped out of a bad sitcom. Nancy would also tutor the brunette whenever she was over. Eva was in seventh grade, if she were in normal school. But she’s not. She is in the middle of nowhere going crazy with no peers, no friends, no parents. Not even that dog she wanted for her thirteenth birthday. Just her and Grandpa. And Nancy, who she guessed counted. She was here often enough that the smell of her weird floral perfume lingered in the house. The one that smelled like the flower that she’d gotten from her a month ago for her birthday. 

Deputy Pratt got attacked by a wolverine so the department needed Sheriff Whitehorse. He had left about a half hour ago. Stupid Pratt probably chipped a nail. He’s always the one calling Grandpa to come in early. So she sat at the table, reading a book she’s already read, waiting for Nancy. If she had gotten that dog she wouldn’t need Nancy. She was thirteen, she could take care of herself. Before they died, her mom and dad always said when she was old enough she could have one. But Grandpa was allergic, so there went that. But life is full of fun ways to let you down. Like your parents getting killed in a car accident. _Happy birthday you can’t have a dog, but you can have dead parents._

Things couldn’t get any worse than they already were. Then another half hour passed. Eva heard a car engine approach the house then cut out. 

_Ding dong!_

Oh, Nancy was here, things _could_ get worse! She pushed herself away from the table, leaving her book, and went to answer the door. She stood on the tips of her toes to look through the spy hole to reaffirm what she already knew. Nancy was here with her knitting. Again. 

“Eva, it’s rude to leave guests in the cold.” Nancy said. 

Yeah, guest, sure. Putting on a fake smile she opened the door. Nancy all but pushed past her to get inside. 

“A hostess needs to be more punctual, deary.” Nancy handed her her jacket and expected to put it away. Eva did reluctantly. 

She heard Nancy scoff at the state of the house. Admittedly it was a _little_ messy. The pizza box from last night was on the floor along with some empty beer cans. There were only two of them living there. What was she expecting from a thirteen year old girl and a fifty-five year old sheriff, who was working all the time?

“You should get this tidied up." She said gesturing to the living room as she made her way to the plush chair in the corner of the room. She made pained noises as she sat herself down. She pulled out her reading glasses and took out the notebook she had her lesson plans in. 

“I’ll get started on your lesson plan for today and tomorrow." Her bones cracked as she leaned back in the chair. What a woman. No wonder she was single. 

Eva rolled her eyes and held back a snarky remark. She didn’t want to argue with the woman. Knowing her luck Nancy would try to get up and lecture on how no man wants a woman who doesn’t cook, clean, and behave. God, she was so old fashioned. She had complained to her Grandpa about it before. He had told her to just go along with it while she was there. 

After putting everything in the recycling, she dropped herself in her chair. It was a smaller version of the one Nancy was sitting in and directly opposite her. Nancy didn’t look up from her knitting.

_Click clack, click clack._

Did she know she finished cleaning?

 _Click clack, click clack_.

Was she aware of what was going on around her?

_Click clack, click clack._

Did She know where she was?

_Click clack, cli-_

“Ms. Nancy?” She asked softly.

_Clack_

“Yes, my dear?” Nancy stopped her knitting and made eye contact. It was unsettling.

“Wh-what now?” Eva stuttered out, “You said you had lesson plans?”

“Oh, yes.” Nancy reached into her purse, “Here you are.” Nancy handed the girl an old paper that looked like it was torn from a book. Her shoulder popped as she tried to move the paper closer. Eva quickly took it. Anything to get that woman to stop moving. She glanced at the words, it was a recipe. A recipe for baked salmon. What.

“What’s this?” she asked as the click clack of knitting needles started up again. 

“Tonight, you’re doing the cooking and cleaning.” She hummed as she went back to knitting. Eva started for the kitchen before she realized.

“We don’t have any salmon.” 

_Click clack, click clack._

“Oh, don't worry, deary. I brought one in my car." Nancy made no move to get up “Go get it, will you?” Eva sighed and drudged to the door. This was so stupid. Who tells a thirteen year old to cook salmon. Oh, it was whole-ass, live salmon. When she leaned over to get it she saw the weird looking cross hanging from the rearview mirror. She groaned as she heafted the gallon sized bucket and brought it inside. She didn't have the muscle mass for this. She didn't have the patience for this. She didn’t want to do this. She complained under her breath the whole way. Nancy didn’t even look up as she stumbled her way to the kitchen, though she did comment. 

“Proper women do not murmur, Eva.” Eva held her tongue. 

She stared at the fish in front of her, she had done this before. Her Grandpa had taken her fishing plenty of times, though only showed her how to clean a fish recently. She took a deep breath and tried to remember the steps. She had never taken a life before. Her eyes welled up with tears as she looked at the suffocating animal that spasmed on the counter. They made eye contact as the animal wordlessly begged for it’s life. She closed hers and went for the kill. The rest of the process went on in a blur of tears and the click clack of needles in the background. 

She wasn't a child anymore. She had taken a life. Blood was on her hands. He probably had a family. She saw Finding Nemo, she knew what she had done. She looked down and saw cuts on her bad hand. She hadn’t even noticed. Luckily they had a first-aid kit. The disinfectant stung when she applied it. She was tired of this. She wept as she bandaged her hand. 

Nancy just kept knitting, ignoring the crying girl in the other room. Nancy used to comfort her when she was younger, but something had changed. She was less of a mother and more like the mother-in-laws she saw on tv. Alway criticizing, never comforting. Like she was supposed to know everything already despite the lack of experience. Like she wasn’t thirteen. But she was. She couldn’t drive, or drink, or vote. She wasn’t an adult no matter how much she wanted to be. She wished her parents would come and get her away from here. Away from Nancy. Away from the reality where she had to act like an adult. But they couldn’t. They were dead. And Nancy wasn’t. 

Dinner itself was uneventful and quiet. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. Not that Nancy cared anyway. At least the salmon was ok. No, it was better than ok. She made it all by herself. Nancy probably couldn’t cook salmon and that's why she made her make it. After dinner Eva started clearing the table. Nancy actually had the nerve to slap her bad hand as she tried to reach over for her plate. 

“Bad manners." Nancy said before sending her to clean the dishes. With dishes cleaned and put away the old woman sent her to bed. It was only nine p.m. on a _Saturday_. If only Grandpa was home, the day wouldn't be god awful. It would have been amazing. Movies till two a.m, junkfood, and sneaking sips from his beers. But he wasn’t. So up the stairs to shower she went so she no longer smelled like fish. 

She dried her hair as she went to go sit on her bed. Her room was pretty small, but she was allowed to really make it her own. Posters of Panic at the disco, Ariana Grande and Paramore, hung on the walls, they were the only ones that understood her. Nancy tried to convince Grandpa that these were no good bands that would turn her into a drug addicted whore. He actually put his foot down at that point telling her that disco didn't make Sharky an arsonist he was like that anyway and that his granddaughter could listen to whatever type of music she liked. Later he clarified to Eva that she could listen to what she wanted within reason but all her favorites could stay. 

On her bedside table was a picture of her and her parents. She was seven when the picture was taken, they had gone to the rock city gardens in Georgia. Her mom and dad were holding her up by her arms, all of them smiling bright. She was missing her front teeth at the time. That vacation had started out so well. Thinking about it brought tears to her eyes. This was the last photo they had together. That same day some drunk driver T-boned them, killing her parents. It was some wealthy lawyer from a rich family. He got off scot-free and that burned her up inside, Grandpa too. Grandpa had made sure to get the photo framed, he kept one in his wallet too. So that they would always be with the both of them. 

Under the photo she kept her mother’s bible and her father’s crucifix necklace, both bloodstained and charred from that night. They clung to them in their last moments before the crash, probably praying that she would be safe. She rubbed her collarbone, trying to get rid of the ghost pain. She had broken her collarbone and right wrist. The marks were still there just like the emotional pain. This was all that was left of them. A painful memory. 

She started getting her night clothes together. Well nightshirt. Her father’s old WWE shirt. He was a big man, six foot-five and all muscle. Built like the Rock. If the Rock was killed by a drunk Undertaker, who didn't watch his own PSA, and left behind an orphan. The shirt hung loosely around her small frame leaving a shoulder exposed, don't tell Nancy. It went all the way down to the middle of her thighs. It was a good nightdress on her. She pulled her hair back and began braiding it. 

By nine thirty she was comfortablely curled up in bed. Not tired. Just in bed. She switched off her lamp and layed down in bed with a huff. She stared at the ceiling unable to sleep. The window in her room faced the front of the house but the curtains were drawn closed. No cryptids looking in her window, especially on the full moon. The light of said moon was spilling through into her room. That was probably why she couldn't sleep. Not because Nancy was making her go to bed early, no not that. Blindly grabbing for her jeans on the floor next to her, she got out her phone. She’d gotten a text from her grandfather. It was a picture of Deputy Pratt covered in bloody bandages and giving a thumbs up. He captioned it with " _hope county's finest_ ". Her lip twitched up with amusement. It was always funny when Pratt messed up. She sent a goodnight text and plugged her phone in. 

She leisurely scrolled through fanfiction. Some My hero, some Parry Hotter, some She-Ra. Nothing really interesting. Same old same old. After an hour or so she switched over to some vine compilations. Some ‘Fre sha vac a do’, some ’there is only one thing worse than a rapist’, and some ‘Your moms a hoe’. She missed her mom. After another hour or so she still wasn't tired. It was so unfair. Nancy sucked. 

She mindlessly clicked her phone screen on and off. It was something to do. Twelve fifteen shown on her phone. The sound of wheels on gravel was growing louder. The car’s engine cut out in front of the house. Weird, it was too early for Grandpa to be back. Pratt’s shift wasn't over until six a.m. 

_Knock_

_Knock_

_Knock_

The door opened, she heard the muffled old voice of Nancy talking to someone, a man. Oh ew. What the hell Nancy? That was Grandpa’s one rule! She wasn’t allowed to have people over. Let alone men! Nancy was a hypocrite and a whore. Proper lady my ass. What _proper_ lady had men over to … Oh, gross Eva napped on that couch. Who would even? With _Nancy_? Ew ew ew. This was why she needed a dog. A dog would scare away icky men. If she told Grandpa maybe he would get rid of Nancy and get her a dog. 

Kicking off her blanket and unplugging her phone she quietly snuck out of her room. She turned on her camera. Whatever old guy from the county was here she was gonna catch him in the act and Grandpa would arrest all of them for being perverts. She watched Law and Order: SVU. She brought her phone up as she neared the top of the stairs. She could hear their pervert voices before she could see their pervert faces. Only degenerates spoke in hushed tones. They clearly had something to hide. Not just from Eva but from God himself. It was too dark to take a picture. Too dark to see anything but shadows wiggling around. Frustrated, she took the hair tie from her hair and shot it at the pervert shadow she thought was Nancy if the bone cracking was anything to go by. 

“Jokes on you bitch, I caught you and your greasy boy toy!” She yelled as she fired. 

The lights were turned on and she could finally see that it was… some guy? She had never seen him before. He was way too young for Nancy. Unless this was worse than she had thought. She had accidentally come across fanfiction like this and didn't like where her mind had gone. He was shirtless, so that wasn't a good start, and had the cross from Nancy's car tattooed on his back. He had a man bun. Ha, gay. There was also a homeless man standing by the door. They were all staring at her. Creeps. 

Nancy re-adjusted her glasses. She was mad. Her wrinkled face was turning red. Maybe she would die. The brunette wouldn't care about that, unlike her parents’ deaths. Nancy looked like she was going to scream. Maybe this wasn't the best idea she’d had. Eva tried to put on a charming hostess smile like Nancy had taught her. But it felt like it came off as cheeky. Shit. 

Nancy opened her mouth and inhaled to yell, but the guy in the aggressively yellow aviators put his hand up and she stopped. Who was this guy? Nancy’s boy lover? Her son? Both? Whoever he was, she listened to him. The man took off his stupid glasses. 

Man bun gave her a once over before making _too much_ eye contact. She was too scared to move. That if she moved he would chase her down, like a cougar, or a wolf, or a raptor. He stood up quickly and that was enough to make her fall back against the stairs. The noise she made was less than dignified but she couldn't control it, it was instinct. She clutched at her heart as if that could keep it from leaving her chest. She tried taking calming breaths to slow her heartbeat as the man slowly made his way towards her. She was going to die. You know what? Good. Nancy would be in _so much_ trouble. She swore that she was going to haunt that woman for the few days she had left on this earth. Then she would be with her parents. 

“It would seem we have a special guest." The man said in a soft voice. _Guest?_ This was her house. He was coming closer with arms outstretched. Did he want a hug? Eva’s eyes darted to the other people in the room. They just watched her expectantly. Did this guy hug everyone? Her eyes went back to him. He glistened for some reason. Was that sweat? Grease? Baby oil? What was Nancy doing to this man? 

When it was evident she wasn't going to hug a moist stranger, he put one hand on the railing and the other on the wall. She felt trapped. He smelled like Nancy’s perfume. Weirdly floral for a man. Not the smell she expected when she saw his sheen. Now that he was too close she could see that some of his tattoos weren't tattoos but engravings. She felt weird for looking so low on the man but he had the word ‘lust’ carved into him right above his lowrise pants. She only looked for a moment and she prayed to God that he didn't notice. Nancy was right, she should have just gone to bed.

“I-uh...” She didn't know where to look, “Uh, what are you doing in my house?” She probably should have addressed that to Nancy. She eventually made eye contact. The man smiled at her. 

"My name is Joseph Seed. Nancy is a part of my flock. She couldn't make it to my service tonight, so I came to hear any confessions or worries she may have." He shifted so he was crowding her even more, effectively trapping her on those stairs. If she wanted to move she would have to get him out of the way. Kneeing him in the nuts was likely the best option. 

"So you're a priest?" The man- Joseph nodded.

"So you're _not_ Nancy's sonsband?" Her head cocked to the side, skeptical. Nancy made a horrified noise. Joseph looked confused and slightly disgusted. 

"No, I’m not. Who might you be, dear?" He asked, and again, she looked to Nancy from under Joseph's arm. She gestured for her to answer. Her throat felt oddly dry, and she had goosebumps. She swallowed, his eyes darting down, watching the way her throat worked. But … this man was a priest? So he couldn't be bad right? Afterall Jerome was a priest and he was cool as hell. This guy was just weird. Misunderstood. Like her. 

"My name is Eva. Eva Marie Whitehorse." She shifted so the step wasn’t digging into her back. Joseph backed off a little, allowing her to get more comfortable. Why was she so nervous still? She then realized just how undressed she was. Nancy was right … again. She felt ashamed and couldn’t meet the man’s eyes. With her right hand she lifted the collar of the shirt to cover her bare shoulder. She didn't notice Joseph’s eyes following the movement. 

Before she could move her hand from her shirt, he took her hand in his. The beads of his rosary clacked together softly. She jumped a little at the contact, bringing herself to meet his intense gaze. He kept his eyes on hers as he placed a soft kiss on her injured hand. Then again over each bandage. His beard tickled in a skratchy way. It was weird. Eva felt her face turning red. It was too much. As quickly as it happened, it stopped. He pulled away from the stairs. 

"It's very late, Miss Whitehorse. You should get some sleep." He sat himself in the chair across from Nancy, her chair. Eva held her hand to herself unsure of what to do. What to think. Her face was still warm. It was probably super red. How lame. She looked to Nancy and she waved the girl off. For once she would listen. The teen turned on her heels and scrambled back to her bedroom, she didn’t want to embarrass herself in front of that man any more than she already did. She paused a moment at her door trying to make sense of what happened before going in and locking the door behind her.


	2. The Father's plans

Joseph had received a call from one of his flock, Nancy he believed her name was. She was given the task of obtaining information on the new deputy the sheriff had brought in. However, she had been tasked with watching Whitehorse’s grandchild that night. The information was vital. He couldn’t send any member of his flock to get it. It needed to be someone close to the sheriff, an insider, Nancy. The old woman had the sheriff’s trust. So much so that he’d let her into his home, and around his only family. Once the services had concluded for the day, he had three armed guards accompany him to the henbane. It was late when they arrived, the only light on in the house was the flickering television in the living room where the old woman waited for them. 

He sent one of his men ahead of him, to stand guard at the door in case something unexpected were to happen. He approached the house as the guard knocked. Nancy opened the door quickly and angrily shushed the guard. It seemed Nancy couldn’t control her temper. Her wrath. He’d need to keep an eye on her sin.

“You’ll wake the girl.” She warned. She turned to Joseph and her anger dissipated. Not unlike his younger brother. That was a troubling sign.

"Welcome, Father." She said, almost reverently. She politely ushered them into the still dark house. The old woman made no move to turn on the lights. Instead, all she did was sit on the couch and turn the tv off. Plunging the room into almost total darkness. 

“Do you have any of what I asked you for?” Joseph asked. He didn’t make a move to sit, he didn’t plan on staying here long. Nancy had a tendency to chat… A lot. The old woman went for her purse. Her bones and joints popping with the most nauseating sound.

“I have his information here somewhere.” She said as she rummaged through her large purse. She kept speaking, trying to make idle conversation that Joseph had no interest in. What he did find interesting were the quiet sounds coming from upstairs. He sighed. Nancy hadn’t made sure the child was asleep before summoning him. Such a careless mind. Such sloth.

If he remembered correctly the child was around thirteen, not quite a child, not yet a teen. Children that young prided themselves on staying up late. He remembered back to when he too was that age, staying up till dawn simply because he could. The creaking of the floorboards grew louder. Something flew by him and hit Nancy in the face, he stifled the laughter that crept up this throat. 

“Jokes on you bitch, I caught you and your greasy boy toy!” The girl’s voice was full of a familiar life and energy. The guard flicked the lights on. 

He turned and his eyes widened in shock. It was…  _ Her _ . His wife, his love, his darling. She was here in front of him, it was unmistakable. He took off his glasses. As if they could be tricking him. Making him see ghosts. There she was, standing atop the stairs in nothing but an oversized shirt. Melissa used to wear his shirt to bed, no matter the life she lived she would remain the same. This was a sign from God that all he was doing was just. He saw fit to return his love to him, and surely that meant their daughter would too be returned. 

His wife gave a mischievous smile, the one she would give while causing trouble. He heard Nancy’s bones as the old woman moved to adjust her glasses. She was still the same. Beside him Nancy was getting ready to lambast her for intruding. He raised a hand to silence her, she took his wife’s antics too personally. The old woman needed to control her wrath. He, perhaps too quickly, approached her. She fell back against the stairs, clutching her chest. She was scared? Did she not recognize him? Another of God’s cruel jokes? No, it was his arrogance that made him think that he could pick up where they left off. He would start over. Help her become who she always was meant to be. His wife, mother to his flock. To his children.

He approached her with open arms, like he did to any of his flock. 

"It would seem, we have a special guest." He spoke more to himself than anyone in the room. He used his body to shield her from the gaze of the others. He was not dressed in his finest, he hoped she would forgive him for that. Forgive him for having his sins exposed so carelessly. He felt her eyes roaming his body. Looking from sin to sin. He enjoyed it more than he would care to admit. Shamefully, the carnal sin at his waist ignited when her eyes dipped low. It was a sin he had tried to conquer many times. Her eyes flickered away, then back to him. He truly couldn't stop smiling. She was beautiful. She had come back to him. She had come home.

“I-uh...” She didn't meet his eye, “Uh, what are you doing in my house?” Her voice shook like a leaf. Coming to find strange men in your home must be terrifying for a young woman. But she had nothing to fear. He would never let any harm come to her. Never again. He learned his lesson long ago. 

"My name is Joseph Seed. Nancy is a part of my flock. She couldn't make it to my service tonight, so I came to hear any confessions or worries she may have." She looked up at him, her eyes were a warm brown. The sort of familiar comfort that one gets after returning home from a long day. Being embraced by the one you care for most. She still had her hackles up. He didn't want her to be afraid. She considered him for a moment. Her eyes ran over him again, briefly glancing at his groin. The sensation of her glancing at such an intimate area made his pants grow tight. He hoped his wife wouldn’t notice. 

"So you're a priest?" Joseph nodded.

"So you're _ not _ Nancy's sonsband?" Nancy's…  _ What _ ? It took him a few moments to piece together the word play.  _ Son husband _ . She thought he would ever move on from her? That he would even consider laying with anyone else, let alone a woman old enough to be his mother. The one with sins as out of control as John. 

"No, I’m not." He said, keeping the disgust in his voice hidden. Surely this wasn’t his beloved’s fault. The sinful old woman must have spoken out of turn in the past. She would need to visit John and atone for her transgressions. 

“Who might you be, dear?" he asked. It wouldn't do well to call her by an unfamiliar name. It would only push her away from him. She looked to her caretaker before meeting his eyes. She looked as if she was relearning who he was. That he could be trusted. He watched her throat constrict elegantly as she swallowed her nerves. Everything she did was breathtaking. 

"My name is Eva. Eva Marie Whitehorse." Eva, different but beautiful nonetheless. She shifted to sit more upright as she grew more comfortable with him. Her nightshirt slipped lower on her shoulder, she moved to protect her modesty. It was such an innocent yet seductive motion that made him burn with sinful thoughts. In the moment, he couldn’t help but to admire the exposed flesh of her shoulder and chest. To notice the harsh divot in her collarbone. Did Nancy do that? Eva, the name felt right, wouldn't meet his eye. As if she was ashamed of the body god had given her. What had Nancy said to his little wife? 

He took her injured hand gently in his own. He felt her jump. She was finally looking at him again. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from hers and he never wanted to. He gently brought her hand to his mouth for a kiss. He wondered if she could feel the shakiness of his breath. He didn’t want to admit it but he too was nervous. He wanted her to love him again with all the passion they had before. Her hands were soft and silky. They smelt of rose and vanilla. Marred only by a few colorful bandaids. How could Nancy let such a radiant woman come to harm? Perhaps she was more sinful than he had first expected, letting her envy allow such neglect. 

Her face flushed red at his show of love. Oh, how he wanted to let his sin consume him. To allow himself to take her away and re-consummate their love. But death did them part and he would have to be strong until they were together again in the eyes of God. It took all of his will but he pulled away from her, now was not the time or place. 

"It's very late, Miss Whitehorse. You should get some sleep." He said as he backed away and sat himself in the chair across from Nancy. Eva went back upstairs. Joseph listened intently as her footsteps grew softer. Nancy handed him the file.

“Dodger Bennett.” He murmured as he flipped through it “Welcome to Eden’s Gate.” The newest deputy was due to arrive any day now. He had much to prepare for. The project, the fight that would ensue. And for his darling wife and him to be reunited as man and wife.

Joseph was smiling during the long drive back to his church. His mind was alight with daydreams of his wife, of the life they would soon share together. His family would be whole once more. He had his brothers, his wife, and in around a year’s time his daughter. No,  _ their _ daughter. It was all the more reason that the project had to succeed. The new Eden would be a paradise for his family, and he would do anything to have it come to fruition. He would never lose any of them again. It would break him and he didn't know if he would be able to recover again. He’d never let any of them go. Ever. Their lives would be beautiful. 

He stretched and took a deep breath as he stepped out of the jeep. The Montana air was clean and refreshing. Pure. He pulled the church doors open and strode towards the altar humming amazing grace. All his heralds sat inside. Jacob and John sat in the pews, playing cards as they waited for him. Faith sat across the room idly re-reading the book of Joseph. 

“Brothers, sister. I have marvelous news.” Joseph announced joyously the file in his hand forgotten. 

“Is that deputy going to be easily manipulated?” John asked, looking up from his hand. Jacob took the opportunity to look at his baby brother’s cards. Looking back at his own, he frowned. Joseph placed the folder on the podium and shook his head. He was giddy with excitement. They had never met Melissa, now Eva. He knew they would love her and welcome her as one of the family. He laughed to himself, a delighted and bubbly sound. Faith and Jacob looked up at this. 

“By the good graces of God, my wife has been reborn, and returned to me.” Joseph spoke, raising his hands to praise the lord for his bavevolance. Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose to sooth his oncoming Joseph induced headache. They have been increasing in frequency. He wasn't one for this level of dramatics. He didn’t realize he had signed up for “reincarnation” bullshit. John alone was bad enough in his yes shit, he didn’t need both of them going off on something this fucking stupid.

“Joseph…” He groaned, he wasn't going to put up with this. This was the line he had to draw. John and Faith’s brows shot up in disbelief. Not them too. Joseph was one selfish asshole for banning alcohol, just cause John can’t stop drinking once he starts. Little bastard snuck it in anyway. Just deprived Jacob of his sweet, sweet heachache relief.

“How  _ old _ is this reincarnation of your wife?” asked the drunk baby bastard, though he had a good point. His voice was one of controlled panic. He knew,  _ he knew _ the answer would be bad. 

“You sure it’s her, Joe?” Bullshit it was his dead fuckin wife.  _ Bullshit _ . The dead don’t just come back because you did what god told you to. It was just as likely that Jacob or John was his dead ass wife. Reincarnation was bullshit. Religion was bullshit. Joseph was lucky that Jacob loved him enough to put up with all this. His wife was as dead as Miller and their parents.

“I’m more than sure, Jacob. The way she looks, talks and carries herself. It was like I was suddenly thrown years into the past.” John didn't like that answer. _ He didn’t like it at all. _ He wasn't the best at math but it didn't sound like his “wife” was over eighteen. 

“ _ How old is she, Joseph _ ?” John all but screeched. He wasn’t one to question his older brother, but his lawyer instincts were kicking in.

“John, my wife is as she ever was.” Joseph said. Both of them knew he was deflecting. Not good. Oh god.

“ _ Joseph _ .” John pleaded. Jacob didn’t like hearing his baby brother in that much distress. 

“How does one calculate the years in which a soul has lived many lives?”

“I don’t care about her other lives!” John was yelling now, “I care about this one!  _ How old is this girl, Joseph _ ?!” 

“Just answer him, Joe.” Jacob groaned. “ You’ll give him an aneurysm and if you haven’t noticed there’s no  _ hospital  _ in this county.” Joseph only sighed. How could his brothers be so caught up on this one minute detail. He put his smile back on. 

“I believe my informant said she was thirteen.” No one spoke. Jacob and John looked to their brother.. Joseph had to admit he was disappointed. Weren’t they excited? 

“What.” Jacob asked flatly. His brain had yet to come back on. Beside him John let out a strangled scream. Hands in his hair threatening to rip it out. Faith stayed quiet but was wide eyed and looking between them. She didn’t know what to do. None of them did. Jacob resolved to keep a level head. John needed him. John was about to fucking snap and needed someone strong enough to keep him from beating Joseph senseless. It wasn’t time for that. Yet.

“ _ Joseph _ .” John’s voice was desperate and pleading. Pleading that this was an out of character joke. A bad one. A bad joke. That’s what this was. His older brother was  _ not _ a pedophile.

“As your brother and your  _ lawyer _ , I have to say that this is morally and  _ legally  _ reprehensible.” Joseph brought his baby brother's forehead to his own. John’s shoulders slouched at the unwelcome touch. 

“Everything happens for a reason, John. It is all a part of God’s plan.” He murmured, trying to placate him. John usually trusted Joseph, how could he not, but this. This was different. This was  _ wrong _ . As much as he loved him and wanted to let things go. He couldn’t. Not this time. Joseph pulled away from him and turned to Jacob. 

“Jacob. When the reaping begins, you will take your hunters and collect my wife from the sheriff’s home.” Joseph spoke with authority. This was an order. Jacob groaned and ran his hand down his face. Here came the headache again. 

“Don’t rape that kid, Joe.” He said bluntly. Joseph looked appalled. That was something at least. Bare minimum. 

“I would never force myself on her, Jacob. I swear it.” Swore the man that killed his infant daughter. Joseph’s mood was ruined by his brothers’ distaste for his soon to be wife. By the time of the wedding he would have their blessing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally going to be a dead dove kind of fic, but it didn't work out that way.


	3. Whatchya' gonna do when they come for you?

Nancy offered Eva a deal the morning after Joseph came over. She would give her forty dollars, and in exchange, the teen wouldn’t tell her grandpa about the men she brought over. It was tempting to say no. To get rid of Nancy once and for all. She knew the cards she held were powerful. She took the money on the condition of later bedtimes and none on the weekends. From then on her lips were sealed. Until Nancy slipped up. Then all bets were off. 

A few months had passed since then. Nancy had been gone for a week or so and came back nicer. Nancy still babysat, but did more of the cooking and cleaning. Every now and then Nancy would mention Joseph and something called Eden’s gate. How she would be happy there. How wonderful he was. How the flock took care of each other. How they were one big family. That they had a lot of dogs. The only time Nancy reverted back to her old self was when Eva said “I’m not joining your cult.”, Nancy had almost hit her. The old woman got a strange look in her eye before putting her hand down and a smile back on her face. What happened to Nancy? It was funny before, but now it was scary. Maybe she should have told Grandpa.

After that incident Nancy stopped talking about Eden's Gate completely and tonight she had been mostly silent. Eva felt bad for the old woman. Clearly something was wrong. Maybe she knew she was going to die soon. The old woman was quilting instead of knitting today.

“Nancy?”

“Yes, deary?” 

“Could you show me how to quilt?” She couldn't believe she had asked that. But anything was better than a weird Nancy. The old woman’s eyes lit up. 

“Oh yes, yes child. Come take a seat.” Eva sat and Nancy showed her how to quilt.

It was nearing midnight and she was tired as hell. Nancy seemed determined to have them both finish it that night. The teen was dozing off only to wake herself back up when accidentally pricking herself with a needle. This time she was bleeding. She got up and went to the kitchen. She fumbled with the cabinet to get a bandaid. While there, she heard Nancy pick up her radio.

“You still planning on going through with this, Earl?” She asked.

“ _ Yup _ .  _ Still trying to talk some sense into our good friend the Marshal.”  _ Her grandfather’s voice was unmistakable.

“Well, if he gives you any trouble, just let me know.”

“ _ You got it, over and out. _ ” Eva walked back into the living room and stared at the radio. Like a starving child looking at a piping hot meal.

“Can I-”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’re on an important mission.” she said as she quilted, “I can finish up here if you would like to go to sleep.”

Eva curled up on the couch. She was worried about her Grandpa, more so than usual. She didn’t know what he was doing but whatever it was was dangerous. What if Pratt messed everything up? She wanted to stay awake in case he radioed again. She sat there quiet as the minutes passed by and it got later and later. At some point she must have fallen asleep because she was then woken up by loud, aggressive banging on the door. Still disoriented from sleep she jumped up and looked around for Nancy. She was gone. What a bitch. 

She screamed when the front door was kicked in. What was happening? A large man in military clothing stepped in, he had bright red hair and his face was badly burned. He was carrying a _ candy red _ sniper. What? Didn’t that defeat the purpose of a sniper? It’s color was louder than it’s shot! Who? He looked like he could snap her neck with one hand. He scanned the room before his eyes landed on her. His mouth contorted up into a painful looking smile. She let out a terrified shriek but her legs wouldn’t move. She wanted to run.  _ Oh, did she need to _ . He came closer. She wanted to scream again for help but she couldn't find her voice. 

“Time to bring you home, pup.” He said. Tears fell fast from her eyes. There was no denying it, she was going to die. She wished her body would move. She needed to move. She needed to live. She couldn’t leave Grandpa all alone in the world. She finally gained control of her hand and she felt the quilt behind her. Thinking fast she flung the quilt at the man when he got close and dove for the knitting needles. The man let out a grunt and tossed the quilt aside. It had given her enough time to arm herself. 

Eva quickly crawled behind the couch, but she wasn't fast enough. The man caught her by the ankle and pulled her back out into the open. She turned in his grip and stabbed his hand with one of the needles. He yelled and reflexively let her go. She used the opening to scramble away. 

“You little piece of-” He didn't finish his thought as he grabbed her by the back of her shirt. He pulled her closer and she went at him again with the same needle. At this point he had caught on and grabbed her wrist. She kicked and screamed obscenities. He wasn't budging. She kicked him in the balls. He let go of her wrist but not her shirt. She slipped out of her shirt and dropped to the floor and stabbed him in the leg.

“Fuck!” She heard him shout as she ran up the stairs and into her room. With shaking hands she locked her door. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, what was she going to do? She didn't have her phone, she couldn't call 911. If she had a dog she probably would be ok. It would have eaten the ugly, bigfoot looking man. She heard heavy footsteps coming closer. Looking around the room she did the first thing that came to mind. She grabbed a shirt from her floor, her ceramic cheeseburger piggy bank off her dresser, and shimmied out her window. When she dropped down and a homeless man was in front of her with a gun. She took her piggy bank and smashed him over the head and ran into the woods. 

“You can run, kid! But the wolves are closing in on you!” Oh great, the crazy man had crazy dogs too. She heard a few gunshots and bullets whizzed past her head. Oh shit. He was gonna kill her. At least there was DNA evidence in her house. The cops would find him. She watched Law and Order: SVU and she knew how this worked. Eventually it grew quiet. She didn't let her guard down but she took the moment to catch her breath. She stayed low and hidden. She had to find a neighbor’s house. It would take a while, because they lived in the middle of nowhere, but bigfoot was a bad shot. She just had to pick a direction and go. Left. she would go left. 

It was cold so she pulled the shirt she grabbed over her head. Mistake! She pulled her head through and turned behind her. Wham, a punch to her face.

“You’re being a real pain in the ass, kid.” Bigfoot said as the world around her faded to black. She hoped her grandpa would know she had tried. 

Jacob sighed as he watched her lose consciousness. This kid was feral. Joseph was going to have a hard time with her. Good. He ripped the knitting needles out and dropped them to the forest floor. Who was going to arrest him? The police? 

He flexed his hand. Still working. Little shit needed to aim better if she wanted to really do some damage. He looked down at the kid. She was a mess. For one her shirt was inside out. Her socks didn’t match at all, and were caked in mud and little sticks. Her face was bleeding. Oops. He called his men telling them to bring the quilt and duct tape. One of his men brought them over.

“Check the area for supplies while we’re here.” He ordered, then proceeded to wrap her in the quilt. Duct tape around that to make sure she couldn’t escape if she woke up. Didn't want the little shit to jump out of the car. If Joseph was mad about her bruised face, he’d be pissed about her being road kill.

He hoisted the girl over his shoulder, she weighed almost nothing, and walked back to the car. He thought about buckling her in but threw her in the trunk instead. He waited for his men to be done. They had found a supply stash nearby. One of them had also raided the girl’s room for her things. Joseph probably gave that order. Ugh. Ew. Why? When had his middle brother become a pervert? Where did he go wrong? Why was John less of a degenerate? Sometimes kids break your heart. Sometimes, it’s your forty year old little brother. Who’s a pedophile and also thinks he hears god. And that god wants him to peddle this kid. Sometimes, life is just like that. He gave the signal and they were off back to the compound. 

Eva, Melissa, he didn't care,  _ the kid _ must have come to about half way through the trip back. He heard thumping coming from the trunk. Maybe she would tire herself out. 

“No, no, no! Don’t take me to a secondary location! Oh god, I’m gonna die! No one comes back from secondary locations!” The girl wept loudly. At least she knew she was fucked. Maybe she would behave. She kept whining. Ugh so much for napping on the way back. He turned up the radio. He would rather listen to “ _ Oh John _ ” then this. He tuned her out for the rest of the ride. 

Once they got to the compound he opened the trunk. She glared up at him, her eyes red and puffy from crying. She spat at Jacob, blood in her saliva. He sighed. Why couldn't this be easy? 

“Welcome to the secondary location, kid.” He taunted. She started crying again. Maybe this would dissuade Joseph from touching her. He picked her up and carried her under his arm. 

“You smell like blood.” The kid whined.

“That’s your fault. Deal with it” He opened the church door. Everyone was inside already just standing around discussing something. They turned to look at him and the sobbing bundle. Just as Joseph opened his mouth to speak, Jacob unceremoniously dropped Eva to the floor. She let out a pained grunt and stopped moving. The church went quiet. They all watched the unmoving child not move. John coughed. No one wanted to be the first to ask.

“She’s not dead.” Jacob answered, not totally sure. If she died because of this after all he went though he would be a little bit steamed. But at least Joseph couldn’t molest her if she was dead. Well he could but that was a different issue. One he didn’t care about. 

“Jacob!” Joseph was horrified. He rushed over to Eva and paled further upon seeing her bruised and bloodied face.

“ Well she’s not. I mean, probably.” Jacob shrugged.

“What did you  _ do _ ?!” He hissed through gritted teeth, cradling the unconscious girl to his chest, checking her pulse. He gave out a sigh of relief. She was alive. 

“It stabbed me in the hand with a knitting needle. Twice.” Jacob grumbled, unamused at the errand he was sent on. 

“The  _ child _ stabbed you twice.” John corrected, though he looked at Joseph, who was gently caressing the girl’s face. 

“It would have killed you.” John looked mildly offended. Joseph lifted Eva gently off the ground and sent his siblings away. He walked her to his personal quarters. Even like this she was beautiful. He unwrapped her from the quilt like the present from God she was. He was careful when cleaning her wounds not to wake her or do any further damage. She had endured a lot today. He tucked her into his bed and sat beside her watching her chest rise and fall with her breathing. He gave into his impulse and ran his fingers through her hair. It was soft and angelic. 

“Even wounded as you are, you’re still a vision. Radiant in your innocence, your purity.” He whispered softly. He stroked her cheek and placed a kiss on her forehead. He hadn’t felt this much peace in a long time. He stood and took the quilt she had come to him in. He left the room to wash it. It was lovely and made by his precious Eva’s own two hands. He looked at it and paused, bringing it up to his face. Closing his eyes and inhaling, he let the scent wash over him. He groaned, she smelled of rosy vanilla. His body began reacting sinfully as he continued smelling the blanket. 

He reluctantly pulled away. It was dangerous to indulge his sins like that. He had to wait until they were united in the eyes of the lord. He still had much to do before then. He placed the quilt on top of the rest of the things that needed to be washed. Those in his flock would see to it that it would be delicately washed, by hand. Those who were unable to fight, for whatever reason, helped in such manners at all hours. 

He still had an uncomfortable tightness in his pants that begged for the release of his sin. This was further proof that Eva was his wife. No other woman had been able to elicit such a reaction from him. Just her scent brought him to such a state. He needed to expel this sin quickly. He would take care of this in the shower and repent later. He thought of when he would eventually be able to openly share this with his wife again and a thrill ran up his spine. He opened the door to his private quarters, being careful to be as quiet as possible. 

He looked to the unconscious girl in his bed, her chest rose and fell at a slow, even pace. She made soft noises in her sleep, she even enticed him in her sleep. He reached to stroke her cheek but stopped himself, he knew if he touched her he wouldn't be able to control himself. He would partake of her flesh before they were united before God. She needed her rest, she was still growing. He silently gathered a few articles of clothing and made his way to the shower.. He set his clothes down and undressed, his erection bouncing free from his boxers. He turned on the water and stepped into the shower. The cold water shocked his senses. His body told him to get out but he had to expel the sin from his body. No matter how cold the water his body was still hot with arousal. His erection persisted. He felt shame as he gave into temptation. His shame was overpowered by the pleasure he felt when he took a hold of himself. It had been so long since he last partook. 

His thoughts were of Eva sound asleep in his room. No their room and their bed. He thought back to that first night they met. Her shoulder exposing a teasing amount of flesh ignited his imagination into what may lie beneath her nightshirt. If he were a weaker man he would have taken her right there on the stairs. In front of his men, in front of Nancy, and in front of God. He thought of walking into the other room to pull back her nightgown and exposing her to his greedy eyes. That would only add to his sin, and lord help him that only aroused him further. He rested his head against the tile of the wall and groaned, the sound from deep in his chest.

He braced himself against he shower wall. The thought of defiling her, of sowing his seed deep inside her and watching her grow round with his child had him weak at the knees. Melissa had looked absolutely titillating when she was heavy with their daughter. Eva would look just as good if not better this time around. He tightened his grip on his member and began thrusting his hips in time with the jerk of his wrist. He had forgotten how good it felt. It had been so long. He didn’t last long. He was weak to the sin of lust. A cut off moan and the stuttering of his hips, then all physical evidence of his sin washed down the drain. He took a moment to collect himself before warming the water and continuing his shower. 

Relieved, and towel on his head, Joseph stepped out of the bathroom. He would repent by fasting. It would be worth what he would endure for how relaxed he felt in the moment. Eva had shifted to the side of the bed that was closest to the wall. She had cocooned herself happily in his blankets. He sat on the edge of the bed, the dip hadn’t disturbed her. He wanted to lay beside her, holding her close like the precious creature she was. The day would come soon. Not unlike helping John during his withdrawal, or helping Jacob learn to feel again. He would touch her, deep in her soul. She would seek comfort in his arms. Seek his help in healing her soul, her faults, her hurting body. Breathe new life into her. Not that she didn’t already have new life breathed into her. He laughed to himself as he left the room. Locking the door behind himself. 


	4. How many deputies does it take to fight a cult?

Taking the Hope county jail was a real pain in the ass. Peggies and angels threw themselves at the walls of the jail in waves. Running back and forth along the wall picking people up. He was so glad it was over. Deputy Dodger Bennett had only been working for the police for a few months. Now everything was shit. He was so lucky. His job used to be going out and breaking up bar fights, handing out speeding tickets, shit like that. Now his job was shooting Peggies, saving locals from said Peggies, and getting ready to kill four specific people. He better be getting paid. At least he wasn’t the only one running around trying not to get killed. His fellow deputies, most of whom he didn’t want to see dead, were helping out. Except Thomson. Who was fucking  _ missing _ . Mr. Hard-ass is off the clock during the shit show apparently. He'd better be fucking dead. This whole situation was fucked. 

Yet here he sat, on an old cot in the formerly abandoned prison with Tracey fixing up his wounds. He just stared off into the distance, allowing himself to rest for the first time since this all started. Corpses of Peggies and civilians were strewn about outside, collecting flies and attracting vultures as they sat in the sun. It was good that the heat of summer was over or the entire county would smell of decaying cultist flesh. He put his face in his hands and groaned. Oh god, he sounded like Jess. 

Tracey had finished patching him up. He needed some air. He went outside into the courtyard. People were carrying bodies around and the Rook sisters were keeping tabs of the casualties, not looking the least bit unnerved by the whole thing. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to keep calm. At least there was a nice cool breeze. The weather was deceptively nice. Wasn’t it supposed to be all doom and gloom? Thunder and lightning with stupidly high winds. This was a doomsday cult they were fighting. Where was the doom? How was he supposed to deal with the deaths of innocents in perfect picnic weather? He needed a smoke break. He didn’t even smoke. 

He turned to walk off his emotions and saw Cooper and Miller, the inseparable duo, fixing the gate with the same attitude one would build IKEA furniture. Meaning Miller was fixing the gate and Cooper was micromanaging. It just pissed Dodger off even more. People were dying and they were acting like this was a bad camping trip. Where the  _ fuck  _ was Thomson? That loser was probably handling this worse than him. Yeah, that was it. He wasn’t dead, just hiding somewhere. 

Whitehorse briskly walked outside looking around at all the people they had left. 

“Has anyone seen Nancy?” He asked. He didn’t sound good, like he was ready to cry. Oh god, Nancy, that fucking bitch. He spat on the ground when he heard that Judas’s name. 

"That bitch was a mole, Whitehorse." He didn’t know why he gave a shit about her. The sheriff looked like he was going to be sick. That wasn’t good. They didn’t have a thing going on on the side, did they? 

"What?" He stammered out, a thin layer of sweat breaking out over his wrinkled forehead.

"Nancy. That diseased cunt was working for the cult." The sheriff staggered back against the wall, using it to hold himself up. Dodger quickly went over to help the older man stand. 

"I- I left my granddaughter with her." His voice was barely a whisper. Dodge's eyes went wide, if something happened to that girl it would kill the sheriff. Literally probably. Miller and Cooper stopped what they were doing and went silent. In the few months he knew the man, it was apparent that he thought the world of his granddaughter. He would talk about her so much that it got annoying at times. 

"Oh, fuck. Oh, shit. Sheriff, we gotta get a move on." He said, his voice raising in pitch as he kept talking. He had to do something. Anything. His hands were shaking, he didn’t trust himself to keep Whitehorse in one piece. Cooper came over, guiding the older man by the shoulders. 

“Let’s get you inside. Get you sitting." He said calmly. He ushered the man inside. When the door to the jail closed Dodger’s breathing became erratic. 

"Oh god. They probably have her. Eva." He wheezed, squatting on the ground, his legs no longer keeping him up. All he could think about were the horrible things that were probably happening to that child. If she was alive. She was dead. Thomson was dead. They were all going to die.

He felt a hand lightly smack his face. He looked up. It was Miller, looking concerned. 

"Sorry. I was afraid if I hit you too hard during your freak out, that you'd attack me." She brought her hand back to herself.

"But you need to calm down. You won't get anything done hyperventilating to death in a jail yard!"

What am I supposed to do then, Miller?!" Dodger shouted, arms swinging out in frustration.

"We're each going to search a region. But only once the jail is secure and the dead are accounted for and buried. If you need to do something right now, go to the sheriff's home. Look for clues, or witnesses. Anything. It's east from Lorna's truck stop."

Miller was not only actually paying attention to what was going on around her, but she made a good suggestion. Maybe the world was ending. Dodger didn’t waste any time and grabbed the first car he found and hit the gas. In the back of his mind he thought that maybe he wasn't in the best shape to drive but that was drowned out by the need to do something. He said a silent prayer, for Eva's safety, for the sheriff’s safety, for the safety of Hope County. Dodger Bennett wasn’t a praying man. Hell, he wasn't even religious. He was desperate. 

As he sped down the road a Peggie ran out. Reflexively he hit the break and by accident had hit the Peggie. Dodger just sat there, a dead cultist under his car. He put his head against the steering wheel, horn blaring loud. It was just a Peggie. Not a person. He kept repeating that in his mind. It took him a while to calm down. He shouldn't be driving. He got out of the car to pace while calling in Jess and Sharky. He leaned against the hood of the car while he waited for them to get to his location. It wouldn’t be long. Dodger was hell bent on protecting Eva. She was thirteen if he remembered correctly, that was that same age as his own sister, Minnie. From their limited interaction Dodger knew that Joseph Seed was a  _ touchy  _ man. His mind stopped there. The two guns for hire arrived and took over the driving. 

“You ok, Bro?” Sharky asked with a genuine concern as he got into the back of the car. Jess took over the driver’s seat. Dodger took a moment before he responded. 

“The cult took Whitehorse’s Granddaughter” He said. It wasn’t deflecting was it?

“Shit.” Jess said as she started driving. 

“You don’t think they would do anything to her right?” he heard Sharky ask. The arsonist kept babbling but the deputy wasn’t really paying any attention. He was brought back to the moment when Jess put her hand on his and gave it a reaffirming squeeze. He looked up, noticing that they had arrived, and looked at Jess. She kept her eyes on him. 

“We’ll get her back and to her family. Then we’ll take out those fuckers so they can’t hurt anyone else.” She reassured him. He took a slow calming breath. Yeah, they could do this. 

“Hell yeah, amigo! We got this!” Sharky yelled. Dodger slammed the car door shut and grabbed his shotgun. The house was trashed. That was putting it lightly. The door was off its hinges and laying on the living room floor, the windows were busted out. The only thing of note on the outside was the fact that there was nothing spray painted on the house. Inside was worse. All the furniture was knocked over, books had been torn off the shelves and left on the floor. His blood went cold when he saw splatters of blood on the carpet. It wasn’t a lot, so chances are they didn't kill her. 

“It might not be her blood, Dep.” Jess said, reading his expression. That was true, though there was no way to tell for sure with so few resources. 

“The girl is a fighter.” She reassured him. Sharky watched the door as the other two ventured further into the Whitehorse household. He carefully went up the stairs, clothing from the rooms on the second floor were on the ground. All the doors were left open. The cult must have gone through each room. 

The first room must have been the sheriff’s. The walls were olive green and had a dark hardwood floor. All the dresser drawers were pulled out and scattered around the room. He took a step into the room and heard the crunch of broken glass beneath his feet. He pulled his foot back and saw a picture in a broken frame. It was of a young Whitehorse and a woman. His late wife? He carefully picked it up and placed it on the dresser. Next to it was a multi image frame that had three pictures of the same boy at different stages of life. A baby swaddled up in a blue blanket. A young boy in a cougar’s baseball uniform. A young man wearing a graduation cap. In a separate frame was that same man in a tux and a woman in a wedding dress. In a smaller frame was a picture of that same woman with a baby swaddled in a pink blanket. 

Was that Eva? This must have been his son and his family. The fact he knew they were all dead made this sad. His only living relative was in the hands of the cult. He had lost so many people, but he kept living on. How could Nancy do this? Didn’t Whitehorse suffer enough? He looked around the room for anything else. Everything else he found was just an assortment of random papers. Someone couldn’t find what they were looking for.

The bathroom next door wasn’t trashed. What seemed off was that there were so few toiletries. The only bottle left was a three-in-one soap, shampoo, and conditioner. Looked like something the sheriff would use. There was a man’s raiser, shaving cream, and a washcloth. Didn’t seem like a tween girl was living here. Not good. Why would the cult want her shampoos? It’s not like they were using them based on how the Peggies looked. Opening the medicine cabinet he found that they had left the med kit. Dodger picked it up. These were hard to come by. Waste not, want not. 

After he was done searching the bathroom he went across the hall to Eva’s room. The door was kicked in. It barely hung to the wall. He was expecting it to be bad. But her room was almost completely bare. All of her things were just gone. No blankets, empty drawers left open, no curtains on the window. Only thing left was the empty furniture. What would they want with a tween girl’s things? Not even just  _ some  _ of her things… _ All of them _ . Her window was open. Not broken like the rest of them. Open. Did Eva try to escape? 

Whatever reason they took her for they clearly intended to keep her. They seemed to want to placate her with her things. Keep her comfortable. More so than the average Peggie. Only the heralds were kept in any sort of comfort. That meant she must have been an important part of whatever they were planning. A bad, bad, bad sign. Fuck. He hoped they weren’t planning on turning her into the next Faith. The resistance had been slowly pushing back in Faith’s region. Did Joseph consider her a failure and needed to replace her? Or was she going to be married off to one of them? That wouldn’t be a far fetched idea, considering they were a crazy cult and cult leaders married little girls. He turned to leave the room and saw a photo of little Eva with her parents. Why would they take all of her shit but not the photo of her dead parents?

There was a gunshot and Dodger whipped around and dropped the photo. Looking out the window he saw a band of Peggies running up towards the house. Sharky was screaming and running at them. He saw the occasional arrow flying out from a first story window. He sprinted down the stairs and out the front door. Between the three of them and the amount of fire that was consuming the forest. This wouldn’t take long. Hopefully finding Eva would be as easy as killing Peggies. God, what kind of person was he becoming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We never actually described what the deputies look like. Does anyone care? Does it matter?


	5. No escape

Eva groaned softly, shifting so she could get comfortable as she tried to not wake up. It was too bright. As she moved to hide her face in her pillow she realized her face hurt. Groaning again she pulled the blankets up over her instead, to block out the light. Her right shoulder ached in protest at the movement. Five more minutes… At least. She smelled blood. A bloody nose during her sleep? She refused to open her eyes. She just wanted to sleep forever. As her brain woke up more she realized her mouth had a metallic taste in it. Blood? What? She opened her mouth and licked her lip in an unconscious attempt to get the taste out. There was a scab. How did she bust her lip? These were questions for later. 

Now all that mattered was sleep. She snuggled into her blanket. It was nice, clean, and soft. She took a deep breath and sighed happily. Wait? This didn’t smell like her detergent. She took a few quick sniffs, it smelled familiar. Was this Nancy’s perfume? Her head ached. Maybe she was under the quilt they had made from last night. That was it. Grandpa must have come home and brought her upstairs with the quilt. She smiled. The mission had gone well. 

She must have fallen asleep on the couch, after quilting with Nancy. Something seemed wrong. Grandpa had left for an important mission and said that he would be back tomorrow and Nancy would be watching her. She’d been reading Lord of the Rings that night. Then Nancy came over and brought quilting instead of knitting. They ate. Nancy was being weirdly quiet last night and Eva had asked to quilt with her. It had been boring. She took a break and waited for grandpa to radio and fell asleep. Wait. There was something after that, wasn’t there? She’d woken up after that. Nancy was gone. Then there was a knock at the door and…

The most horrible night of her life flashed before her eyes. She shot up throwing the blankets off her as the panic began to well up inside her. A scream built up inside her but she covered her mouth and held it in. Her captures didn’t need to know she was awake. She was alone in the small room. It didn’t have much in the way of decorations. Just the floral smelling bed, a side table, a small bookshelf with a few things on it. All of the furniture and the floor were made of the same wood. Everything else was white. The walls, the linens, everything. The bed had patches of her blood in it where her face had been. Where was she? She reached for her father’s crucifix and felt that it was no longer around her neck. Ok, ok, it would be at home when she got there. It had to be. She got out of the bed, she was still in the shirt she had grabbed from the floor, her father’s W.W.E. shirt. It was inside out. Great. 

She slipped the shirt on the right way and took the moment to assess the damage. Her arms were littered with small bruises from her struggle from last night. None of them were that bad. Her shoulder and upper chest were bruised too, an ugly purple color. Worse than her arms by a long shot. Her uncovered legs were covered in many small cuts that had scabbed over. She stood slowly on unsteady legs. Her body tired from the night prior. She walked towards the nearest door and reached for the knob. Eva heard muffled speech coming the other side and paused. She needed to keep a low profile. 

She backed away, staying as quiet as she could. Luckily the floor wasn’t creaky. Her feet tapped against the wooden floor quickly and quietly to the only other door in the room. Eva put her ear to the door and listened. It was quiet. Good. Please, please, please let it be connected to a way out. She took a deep breath and quickly opened the door. She deflated a bit. It was a  _ bathroom _ . Approaching the mirror she winced. She looked terrible. Two black eyes that thankfully there wasn't a ton of swelling. There was bad bruising covering the right side of her face, and a jagged scab over where her lip split. She smiled to herself in the mirror and flinched. It hurt to smile. 

Eva tired the sink’s handles. The water that came forth was nice and clear. Cupping her hands she gathered some water and splashed it over her face. It felt nice. There was a clean looking towel that was hanging close. She grabbed it and gently patted her face dry. Her mouth still tasted like blood. She swished a handful of water in her mouth then spat it out in the sink. Old blood went down the drain. She did this a few times till the water was clear. She looked in the mirror. Much better! Pumping herself up mentally she was ready to get out of here. Looking around the rest of the bathroom there were no windows. Just a shower, a toilet, and a sink. At least they all were clean. 

Going back to the main room she saw curtains covering a window that was just above the bed. Climbing up on the bed she reached to pull the curtains back. Pain shot through her shoulder as she moved the heavy fabric. Light poured into the room. There were bars over the window. Outside were a few white buildings and flowers, all that was surrounded by a large fence. From what she could see beyond that were trees. Freedom. What was weird was that there were no people, no distinctive landmarks. 

Taking a step back, Eva took a few deep breaths to steady herself. If she started to panic she would be screwed. This was an emergency situation. Grandpa always said to stay calm and rational when faced with a dangerous situation. This  _ was  _ one of those situations. She didn’t know where she was, and, presumably, neither did her grandpa.

Trying the first door again seemed like a good idea. Quietly she padded back there. She bravely took the doorknob in hand. She could hear her own heartbeat in her ears. She wiped sweat that was forming off her brow. Fear of the unknown on the other side of the door grew. Bigfoot might still be out there. Ready to punch her in the face and drag her to a tertiary location. What if it was a whole family of bigfoot? Bigfoots? Bigfeet? Were they going to kill and eat her? Before she opened the door she listened again. The voices were still there. 

“-- can’t-- -- -- -- kid.”

“-- -- to be-- -- --”

“Jacob,-- -- -- -- crazy!”

“-- -- -- understand -- --” Three distinct voices, all men. Were they arguing? One of them sounded very upset. Another one was bored, almost monotone. One of them was distantly familiar. Who was that? At least she knew one of them was named Jacob. 

The door swung open. Before she could move the door slammed into her face, sharp and blinding. Blood pooled into her mouth from where her teeth cut into her tongue. Made worse by the reopening of the wound on her lip. Her nose made a loud and audible crunch, blood pouring out like a faucet. She couldn’t feel the blood run down her face through the rest of the pain. Eva landed on the floor with a crack of her head hitting the wooden floor. She laid there on the ground, the world moving slowly. The darkness at the corners of her vision crept closer. Before it consumed her she saw… Joseph? He looked horrified. She felt his warm hands gently move her head to the side to prevent her from choking on her own blood. 

“Joseph?” She asked through a mouthful of blood. She felt it spurt onto the floor. She probably sounded incoherent. The darkness finally overcame her. See you soon mom and dad.


	6. Faith's perspective

Faith had seen a lot. Had been through a lot. A lot more than most people had gone through. Struggles with her family had driven her to the needle for some sort of relief. She used to have friends in Tracey and the Rook sister. Close friends. They had tried to get her to battle her addiction, to have her get help. But addiction makes you a different person. At the time it felt like they were trying to destroy her. That they were no better than the family that, in her mind, had caused all of this. 

Hindsight was twenty-twenty. When she was in a place where she saw her actions for what they really were she was overcome with guilt. She had lashed out at each of them until she finally drove them away. The last one to leave was Beatrice Rook, her closest friend. She was a kind and beautiful girl who was proud of who she was. An out lesbian in a conservative town. Bea tried to coax her out of her self destructing habits, making herself available to her at any hour. Rachel had taken advantage of that knowing she had a crush on her. It was obvious. Eventually it got to be too much. The emotional toll partnered with no willingness to change on Rachel’s part proved to be too much. 

“I can’t do this anymore, Rachel.” her only friend at that point had said. Faith remembered that night with haunting clarity. She saw herself hunched over somewhere in the middle of hope county. She had called Beatrice that night to give her a ride when she was stranded after a bender. Bea had looked so tired. 

“Oh come on Bea, you sound like Alice.” She said as she stood up on unsturdy legs. Faith wanted to scream at herself knowing what came next. 

“I love you Rachel, but you need help.” Bea reached out towards Rachel in an effort to get her to see. 

“Don’t touch me, you fucking dyke! You’re disgusting.” She had said it with such venom. She smacked the offered hand away. Bea looked hurt. Rachel turned away from her, arms crossed over her chest. It was cold out. Rachel waited for the offer for a ride back. They had done this before. No matter how much they fought Bea always forgave her and helped her. She was quiet for a long time. What, was she crying?

“Goodbye, Rachel.” Was all she had said. Rachel’s eyes went wide and she whipped around to see Bea get into her car. She couldn’t be serious could she? When the car started she panicked.

“You can’t just fucking leave me here.” She screamed. Bea didn’t acknowledge her. 

“Say something, you fucking Lesbo!” Bea looked at her with pity in her eyes.

“Get help, Rachel.” Bea had said in an even tone as she drove away. 

“Fuck you, bitch!" She screeched at the car that only got further and further away. It wouldn’t be until a long time later that Rachel, now Faith, had realized she too had feelings for the girl. Now it was a depressing and sad memory. 

Joseph had found her not long after. She had been walking trying to find her way back when he had passed her by on the road. He had stopped and asked her if she needed help. Something that day had made her trust him. During the car ride she had confessed to him all of her sins. He didn’t judge her. He told her of his brother’s struggles and how he helped him. He offered to help her. She had been hesitant at first but he told her all she needed was faith. 

The Father had saved her from herself. He brought her into the project, helped her get clean, and gave her a purpose bigger than herself. The first Faith had taught her about the book of Joseph and the ways of Eden’s Gate. At first she had been given menial tasks, washing clothes, cooking, cleaning, those sorts of things. It gave her structure and stability. That Faith would often make rounds at the compound, giving words of encouragement and guidance to those that needed it. It was very motherly. Then one day she was gone.

The second Faith didn’t last long. She hid her true nature behind a mask of sin and lies. Like John she struggled to control her wrath. But unlike John, her place in the project could always be filled by another. She used her words to cast doubt in the minds of others. Making those as close as brothers distrust one another. It seemed that it was going unnoticed by the Father and his brothers. Rachel watched as the group she came to see as her new family started to fall apart. One day she decided to bring her concerns to Joseph. She was scared, it would have been easy for him to dismiss her as someone speaking above her station. But he had listened and thanked her for bringing it to his attention. The death of her parents was nothing in compare to the news that the second Faith had been removed. 

That night the Father approached her with an offer for her to become the new Faith. He told her that she had proven her dedication to the project. That by speaking out against a weed in the garden she proved that she was meant to be the next Faith. He had given her the chance to finally kill Rachel and move forward, into the new Eden, as Faith. She took it. She wanted to thank him for saving her. She wanted to do everything she could for the project. It was all too apparent that Faiths were replaceable. She needed to ensure she couldn’t be.

Quickly after she became the third Faith she gave over her family’s conservatory. It would prove of great value to Eden’s Gate. She was given small white flowers to work with. She concentrated them into a powerful drug. Breathed in, injected, or consumed it would help people see the light. The Bliss. Those who wandered too far into it came back as her angels. She had them harvest the Bliss flowers. They were the only ones who could be around it so long without succumbing to the affects. Her angels were too far gone to ever come back. But that was OK. They were as loyal as they were relentless. A tad zombie-like, but it was a necessary and noble sacrifice for the project. The flock would be as loyal as she was. 

God whispered his word to Joseph. When she had first joined she would admit that she was a bit skeptical, but everything he said came true. After that her belief in him was unshaken. God had told him what would happen, and how they could save people from the upcoming collapse. She truly owed her life to the Father and the project as a whole. Eden’s Gate wasn't perfect but that was fine. People weren’t perfect either. What did matter is that they were trying to save people. To help those after the collapse. Everyone had to fight their sin, even the Father. She didn’t expect that one of his sins would involve a thirteen year old girl being his wife. There was something deep and visceral that reacted to the news.

That day when the Father burst into the church, she was expecting a debriefing. Anything that could give them a leg up on the new deputy. Possible sins or weaknesses to be exploited. Instead, Joseph shared the news that his wife had been brought back to him. Reincarnated and given a second chance at life. It would have been good news but she was thirteen. A literal child and to top it all off Sheriff Whitehorse’s granddaughter. The devil was laughing at them. His brothers were as distressed as she was, it seemed. They both voiced their concerns. Faith held her tongue. She was replaceable after all. Like those before her. Speaking out was a one way ticket that led to her being dropped at the bottom of the Angel’s grave.

Joseph approached her later wanting her opinion. After all, his brothers were angry, how would she feel, as a young woman? She chose her words carefully. She told him that perhaps, he should wait till she was older to be united under god. That it was safer for an older teen to give birth than a younger one. He seemed disappointed in her answer, but not enraged. After all, she didn’t question his choice to wed the girl, or even to force her to give him a child.

As morally abhorrent as this all was, she needed to stay alive to protect Eva. Rachel had been taken advantage of by older men at sixteen. Just three years older than Eva. She did anything for her next hit. Thinking about it made her sick to her stomach. The thought that The Father or all people would somehow try and justify pedophilia was disgusting. The fact that he was asking  _ her  _ to justify it to him made it even worse. He wasn’t ignorant enough to blindly follow his sin, yet arrogant enough to believe he was in the right. He didn’t want her opinion, he wanted her approval. His brothers wouldn’t speak out. They were deep in denial. But Faith saw right through Joseph. Oh,  _ he  _ believed that this Eva girl was his late wife, brought back to him by the goodwill of God. He wasn’t lying about that. But he also refused to acknowledge how  _ young _ she was. She was too young to even be left home by herself. The only reason he’d found her was because he needed to speak with her  _ babysitter _ ! But apparently she was old enough to be stuffed full of children.  _ Disgusting. _

Then deputy Dodger Bennett began wreaking havoc. Out of all the deputies he was the most outwardly wrathful. He would have been a wonderful angel. It would have been easy to Bliss the young man into obedience. Bring him to their side. But that would have only made it that much easier for Joseph to abuse the child. Letting Bennett wreck the Henbane was causing a distraction, causing Joseph to leave the compound often. She pretended she was struggling to control her region. Jacob saw right through her. It was terrifying.  _ He  _ was terrifying. She could see it in his eyes that he knew. In the beginning she waited for that moment when he would call her out. But it never came. It seemed like he had no intention of stopping her, or mentioning it to Joseph. 

John also suspected her. Both of them knew she would defect. It was just a matter of time. Yet they did nothing. She was still dedicated to the cause, the project, and the flock. She believed in the word of Joseph. She would never be a threat to The Father’s life. Though she couldn’t stand idly by and allow a young girl to be abused. The other heralds shared her views that this was wrong but not her conviction to save Eva. Joseph needed to be kept away from the girl until she could be considered an adult. Hell, her breasts weren’t fully developed! Her short and curlies were as sparse as an angel’s thoughts!

For now, Faith bided her time. Joseph had to break down the girl’s walls. Weasel his way into her circle, her trust. Two of the flock rushed by her with blood soaked towels. Overhearing a few of the flock she had found out that apparently he’d knocked the kid out by slamming a door into her face. As bad as she felt for Eva, this was a good thing. That would be a set back and buy her more time. Time that Faith needed to convince the resistance that she was ready to turn the henbane over to them, and hopefully, bring Eva back to them. Away from harm, and away from The Father.


	7. Put that back where it came from or so help me

When Eva woke up this time, she was quicker to get out of bed. She observed her surroundings, it was the same room. Everything was exactly the same, window next to the bed, white linens, two doors, and a homeless man by the door... Wait. As she woke up more her face throbbed in pain. She hoped her nose was still straight. The man in the room wasn’t looking at her. Just staring at the wall in front of him. Almost unmoving. She stood in his line of sight but he didn’t acknowledge her. It was weird. Like he was told not to look at her. She jumped when he sniffled, being the first time the man made noise. He rubbed his nose, before bringing his hand back to the rifle he was holding. How had she not noticed the rifle? Why did he have a gun? Wasn’t this like a monastery or something? Joseph was floating around, anyway.

She took a picture down from the wall and weighed it in her hands. It was real glass. It was heavy enough to do what she needed. She walked casually over to the man who wouldn't look at her. Quickly, she lifted the frame above her head. It wouldn’t be the first life she’d taken. She remembered the fish Nancy made her kill in cold blood. She brought it down with full force over his head. She didn’t feel bad. After all, guns were bad. She watched Law and Order: SVU, she knew how this hellish world worked. It was kill or be killed, and dismembered. Then put in a bag, and tossed in the ocean. Eaten by fish so the evidence was harder to identify. The sound of shattering glass filled the room. Shards flew around the room, cutting her legs and hand. The unsuspecting man slumped over. Eva shoved him away from the door and onto the broken bits of glass below. 

As she took a hold of the door knob she heard loud footsteps coming closer. She staggered back from the door. Panicking, Eva dove under the bed to hide. She army crawled as far under it as she could, trying to press herself back against the wall. The door swung open and hit the man on the floor. She saw a few sets of men’s shoes file into the room. Boots and pants were all she could see of them.

“I told you the kid was feral, Joe.” Oh god, it was Bigfoot! She was screwed. He was going to break her nose again. The camo pants and tan boots kicked the bleeding man on the ground, while the black boots and pants stormed into the bathroom, then came back.

“She’s  _ frightened _ , Jacob. Perhaps if you could manage to control your wrath, then maybe Eva wouldn’t be so wary of everything!” Was that Nancy’s priest friend? Why was he hanging out with bigfoot? Was bigfoot religious? Was he baptized?

“She had it coming.” The tan boots started coming closer, then stopped when the black boots got close.

“You hurt her!” 

“The kid’ll bounce back. She would make a good soldier some day.” Soldier? Were they talking about her? Well, she was good at taking lives, so that made sense. 

“That is  _ not _ what god has intended for her, Jacob!” Bigfoot had a name? God had a plan for her? This was the first she was hearing about this. If it didn’t involve her getting a dog, she didn’t want any part in it. The black boots got real close to the bed, then got on his knees, looked under the bed and it was the priest. He offered her a sympathetic smile.

“I’m sorry to have frightened you, Eva.” As Joseph offered the girl his hand she moved back. Frightened of the not quite stranger. The wall kept her within arms reach. Why were their beds so small? 

“Where am I?” She asked in as much of a demanding voice as she could muster. Honestly, it wasn’t much, her voice shook with fear. She wasn’t getting out from under this bed without answers. Joseph seemed a bit annoyed at her childish antics, but maintained a plastic smile. It was obviously uncomfortable for him being crouched like that on the hardwood floor. 

“My church compound. There’s nothing to be afraid of.” Joseph touched his hand to hers reassuringly. Instead of comforting her his words made things worse. 

“Why?” Eva hissed, tears welling up in her eyes. 

“Why would you send bigfoot to my house? He kicked down my door, and shot at me, and punched me in the face, and put me in the trunk of a car, and threw me on the floor, and broke my nose!” She wailed, tears streaming down her face. Joseph exhaled in irritation. She was behaving like a  _ child _ .

“Perhaps we can discuss this in a more comfortable place? Some of my flock have prepared lunch for you.” Eva wanted to protest that she was comfortable where she was. But her stomach growled. She couldn’t remember when she last ate. She sniffled and nodded quietly. Joseph helped pull her out from beneath the bed. The two stood up. He was pleased that she decided to listen to reason. There was nothing to cry about. She was safe with him, and always would be. Eva brushed off her night dress.

“My brother is very sorry for hitting you, aren’t you, Jacob?” Joseph turned to look at the older man, who scoffed, crossed his arms and looked away. It wasn’t an apology, or an answer. The priest sighed and rubbed his head. After a moment, he turned back to Eva.

“My flock brought some clothes and toiletries for you. They’re in the bathroom. You clean yourself up some, then I can answer all your questions.” Joseph gestured to the door that went to the bathroom. Bigfoo- Jacob, picked up the presumably dead man and followed his brother out of the room. The door closed behind them, leaving her alone in the room full of blood and glass. She tiptoed over to the bathroom careful not to step on any glass. There was blood on the floor. She didn't want to get AIDS, that's what happens in Law and Order: SVU, anyway. 

The bath products were all strikingly similar to the ones she liked to use. Shampoo, conditioner, bodywash, facewash, lotion, deodorant, perfume. All of it was just like what she had at her home. Did they guess? It was weirdly accurate if not. Maybe Nancy told them. She didn’t want to think of that old coot anymore. On the sink, was an unopened toothbrush, toothpaste, a brush and some clothes. Her clothes. Did her grandpa give them to the church? Or was that Nancy too? She definitely gave them her bath stuff. The clothing left for her was the yellow dress that she only wore on occasion. Did it even fit anymore? The last time she wore it was to the Rye’s barbecue party. It was nice but the mac and cheese she had been eating was super watery.

Under the dress were a pair of white underwear, matching white stockings, and the handmade apron Nancy gave her for her birthday. She didn’t want it then, and she didn’t want it now. Nancy should have gotten her a dog, killed herself, or nothing at all. None of this was her style. She would never have picked out any of these clothes. Whoever picked this out didn’t know her at all. her blue-grey sweater and blue jeans would have been better.

As the shower water warmed, Eva went and locked the door. No creepers were going to peep on her. Carefully she undressed, trying not to agitate her many wounds and left the clothes on the floor. She sighed and looked in the mirror. It wasn’t as bad as last time. Well… Her bruises weren’t as bad as last time. Her nose, however, was probably broken. It wasn’t crooked, but who knows what else would happen in the next few days. What did Bigfoot have against her? Besides the stabbing. He shouldn’t still be mad about that. It was self defense. Get good scrub. She noticed her hair was still tied into a messy looking braid. She took out the hair tie and left it on the lip of the sink. She looked at the subtle waves left in her hair. It did little to make her face look better. Grabbing the brush she unraveled her hair and began brushing the knots out. Given how long it had been since last brushing her hair was pretty nice. That made her feel a bit better. 

She put her hand under the stream of water, a little hot so she adjusted it. Once she got it to optimal cleaning temperature she pulled back the curtain and got in, making sure to avoid getting water on her face. It stung against her badly bruised shoulder but the warm water felt nice against her back. Dare she say it? Relaxing. She let herself be whisked away into a state of bliss. She started with cleaning her hair. That didn’t hurt. The bottles of shampoo and conditioner were surprisingly light. Like they were used. Weird. 

Once her hair was clean she felt like a person. Now for the annoying part. Her wounds. Grandpa always told her that it was a bad idea to let wounds get infected. Gently she scrubbed at her injured body, trying to have it sting as little as possible. A sudden kock at the door caused her to jump and scrub way harder than intended. Ow.

“H-Hello?” Eva asked, trying not to let the pain show in her voice. Her leg  _ hurt _ , damn. There was no response, or at least there was none she heard over the sound of the water. Then she heard it. The unmistakable click of the door being unlocked. What was the point of a lock then? The door creaked open and Eva crouched in the tub. The curtains were there yes but they would see her shadow on it. Those perverts. She watched as the silhouette of a woman entered the  _ occupied  _ bathroom. 

“Excuse me? I brought some towels for you.” The woman said, she had a pretty voice.

“Uhm, thank you?” Eva answered slowly, more confused to why this woman had a key to get in than anything else. She watched the shadow set towels down and leave. When the door clicked shut she popped her head out from behind the curtain and looked at the towels. They were in fact towels. Good. 

Eva finished up cleaning her wounds. Most of her body stung by the time she turned off the water. She reached out to grab a towel and wrapped herself up in it. She just stood there for a moment, water from her hair dripping. Why was she here? Why did that happen? Drying herself off she got out of the tub. She stared at the clothing with such disappointment There weren’t any other options. Begrudgingly, she got dressed. Everything but the apron. She brushed her teeth, finally replacing the taste of blood with a clean mint. Idly she started to braid her hair. The hair tie was still on the sink and used it to tie off. 

She looked approvingly at her reflection. She looked like a person again! Confidently, she stepped out of the bathroom. She tip tapped around the blood, glass, and the homeless woman cleaning it up. Looking back to make sure the woman wasn’t going to stop her. The woman didn’t even look at her. Finally she was able to leave the room. She might have hyped up this hallway a bit in her mind. It was just as boring looking as her room. The walls had various pictures of Joseph, Jacob, some third guy, and a woman with brown hair. She was pretty. They all sort of looked related. Was the woman one of their wives? Could bigfeet marry? Could priests? The third guy was a nerd so he probably didn’t have anyone who loved him. What a loser. She could probably kill him. Hell, Nancy could probably kill him. 

Eva heard voices down at one of the ends of the hall. It was Joseph and Jacob. They were talking about something. As she got closer she heard the words “judge” and “gift’. So it was boring and she didn’t care. She paid what they were saying no attention. They hadn’t noticed her. She got pretty close to them before she got fed up at the lack of acknowledgement and cleared her throat. They both looked at her. Joseph’s eyes lit up with joy when she saw her. She gave him a smile back. She looked to Jacob who was pinching the bridge of his nose. He didn’t look too happy. Well geez, it was nice to see him too. 

“How are you feeling, Eva?” Joseph asked.

“Better, I guess. You said there was food somewhere?” Her stomach growled loudly as she spoke. She felt her face heat up. Joseph laughed and placed a guiding hand on her back. They walked outside to what looked to be a picnic area. It was cute. He led her to one of the tables and they sat with Jacob. A homeless woman put food in front of them. Her mouth watered as she intently stared at the sandwiches, chips, and water. She reached for the food but before she got it Joseph took her hand. That stopped all thoughts that ran through her mind. She just looked down at the hand holding hers. It was clammy. She heard him saying grace. Nancy would do that too. Her eyes moved from the hand to the priest and finally made eye contact with Jacob. Joseph was holding his hand too. Jacob shrugged. 

The moment Joseph stopped, Jacob pulled his hand free and grabbed two of the sandwiches. Eva didn't pull her hand away just yet, unsure of the procedure. She never touched Nancy if she could help it so she didn’t know how long was too long. She felt his thumb run over the back of her hand before he let it go. Bigfoot stacked his sandwiches making it a double decker and proceeded to eat it. He must have been as hungry as her. She did the same with her sandwiches. Birds sang and flew overhead. The sun was nice and warm on her skin. When Joseph finished his food, he cleared his throat. 

“You had questions, Eva?” Joseph asked, interrupting her as she ate in peace. She did want to know what was going on. 

“Why did your half burned bigfoot kidnap me?” Eva ignored the icy feeling of Jacob’s glare. He was sitting right across from her. Joseph laughed, attracting his glare instead.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t laugh. I’m also very sorry you felt you were kidnapped. I had asked my brother to make sure you were safely brought here.” Joseph answered, sipping his water.

“Okay, but  _ why _ ?” Eva asked again. Joseph sighed and rested his head on his hand, looking at her, deep in thought

“My flock is preparing for something very bad that will be happening in the near future. We’re ensuring as many people as possible are saved. I wanted to make sure that you were well taken care of since your grandfather works so often.” He reached over to her face with his napkin and whipped something off it. She pouted and moved away. She wasn't a child. 

“What’s so bad that’s gonna happen?” She asked.

.“It’s called the collapse. God will rain judgement down on those who fail to prove their worth to Him.” Eve nodded slowly and looked at her food.

“Where’s my grandpa?” She asked.

“He’s working with his deputies. They’re assisting with the approach of the collapse. He doesn’t know any better. He was led astray by that marshall that came to destroy this county.” Eva nodded along, she guessed it made sense. Grandpa left her with people other than Nancy sometimes, when the old lady was busy. It was plausible that he would get Nancy’s priest friend to watch her.


	8. A deal is proposed

Hoofing it across the jail towards the Whitetails was not Dodger’s first choice. Hell, it wasn't even his  _ last  _ choice. If it weren’t for the circumstances he would rather have been dead. At one point they  _ had  _ a car. It was a small beat-up blue four door car with “sinner” sprawled on the hood in white spray paint. It was just left on the side of the road riddled with bullet holes. That car had been him in a nutshell. 

Not five minutes into the drive, a barrage of Peggies came after them. His mistake was getting out of the car. He killed them but more just kept showing up. Bullets, flaming arrows, and fire flew everywhere. More and more cult trucks kept showing up, then blowing up. He was ready to scream at the seemingly endless waves of enemies. A Peggie ran up past him and burned to death on the ground. Dodger checked if the man had any money. Nope. 

“Uhh, Dep, we have a problem.” He heard Sharkey say. What the fuck could it possibly be now? He turned and his mind went blank. The car… Was on  _ fire _ . Dodger just stood there and watched his precious vehicle be engulfed in flames. Jess and Sharkey backed away and Dodger started screaming. No words, just sound. Anger, fear, frustration, and stress in its purest form. 

The screaming didn’t stop until the vehicle exploded. Dropping to his knees, he just watched the smoking remains. All the other vehicles were also impossible to drive. After a while he got up and looked at his friends. Both of them played with fire. It made getting undamaged skins… Difficult, to say the least. He loved his friends but they drove him crazy sometimes.

“Jess, I just want you to know that you kick a lot of ass, and I respect you for that.” Dodger looked over his shoulder at Sharky when he spoke. Bastard  _ loved _ to play with all kinds of fire.

“What the fuck do you want?” Jess hissed.

“Well, between my shoulder blades, is this giant, painful zit. Now-”

“Fuck no!” Her face contorted in disgust.

“Really? I would pop your’s. You’re being selfish here.” Sharky crossed his arms. Dodger cleared his throat.

“All right, kids. That’s enough.”

“Dep, you’re like, the baby of this triad.” Sharky said. Dodger ignored the arsonist and pulled a canteen from his bag. After taking a big swig of water, he heard the tell-tale  _ swoosh _ of Faith. Not this again. This was getting tiring. Sighing, he put the cap back on his canteen and looked at the hallucination. It was different than normal. She wasn’t humming, or singing, or dancing, or skipping. She stood almost stock still, staring at them. Weird, but a welcomed change. 

“Can I help you?” The deputy asked dryly. He didn’t want to deal with any of this. 

“I want to offer you a deal.” Dodger cocked an eyebrow up and briefly looked to his companions. Jess was ready to shoot Faith the moment she moved. Sharky was just staring at her like the idiot he was.

“I’ll bite. What is it?” 

“It’s about the girl. The sheriff’s granddaughter.” Now she had Dodger’s full attention.

“What about her?” He asked. Faith sighed, her shoulders slumping.

“The Father believes that she is his late wife, reborn.” Dodger knew where this was going and he did not like it. Faith continued.

“He intends to wed her and produce a child.”

“Uh, hey, isn’t the sheriff’s kid like,  _ little _ ?” Sharky asked, nudging the deputy's shoulder. The arsonist looked distressed and disgusted. 

“She’s thirteen.” Dodger answered through clenched teeth. Sharky made a puking noise.

“Fuckin’ Peggies.” Jess spat. Faith nodded.

“My loyalty to The Father remains unshaken. However, he refuses to acknowledge that the girl is unprepared for what he plans for her.”

“So what’s this deal, Faith?” Time was of the essence and Dodger knew it.

“I will assist you in recovering the girl. In exchange, you will provide me respite. This will undoubtedly have me branded a Judas.”

“Fuck no!” Jess spat. Dodger shook his head at the huntress.

“You can get her to us unmolested?” He asked. Faith nodded. Dodger chewed on his lip, mulling it over.

“As a show of good faith, I can return the Marshall to you.” She offered, and the deputy snorted.

“Hell no. Keep that fucker. I don’t want him.” Faith seemed surprised by Dodger’s refusal and a little annoyed. She probably didn’t want him either. 

“But I’ll talk with the sheriff, and the others. You know Bea is gonna be on board. Dunno about Alice or Tracey though.” Dodger said, as it wasn’t just his choice to make. With that, Faith disappeared in a puff of green smoke.

“You can’t seriously be considering that bitch’s offer.” Jess shoved Dodger. He groaned dramatically and dropped to the ground.

“We have to save the kid before she gets molested! We don’t have a lot of choices!” He shouted. Sharky offered Dodger his hand and pulled him up onto his feet.

“We gotta walk back to the jail now.” Dodger whined, but started walking back the way they came. Jess and Sharky followed behind him down the road. Maybe they would find another car, as good as the old one. He was going to be dead tired when they got back


	9. Nap time

Expressing her distaste of the yellow dress she was in was apparently a big mistake. Eva now stood on a stool with two older women. Tape measures in hand, fussing over her. They measured her over and over again. Arms, legs, hips, waist, bust, all measured once, twice, three times. All to be sure the dress they’re going to make her just perfect. She tried not to move, getting pricked by needles was not how she wanted to spend her afternoon. Occasionally she would give in and move. The two women were trying their best to not hurt her, more so than Nancy ever did. The longer she stood there the more tired she got. The more tired she got the more she moved. The more she moved the more needles would poke her. 

These women were old, tired and now cranky. If she got blood on the fabric they would have to start again. Lucky that didn't happen or else they would be there late into the night. Eventually they got the shape right enough for them to do the final sewing. Everyone sighed a sigh of relief. This all was almost over. 

Jacob and Joseph stood just outside the building, the younger man looking through the window at the thirteen year old inside. Fabric shifting over her body kept her nudity from his sinful gaze. Jacob kept trying to keep his brother’s attention with news of the mayhem the various deputies were causing all over the county. It was easier said than done, the middle Seed brother was far too distracted by the child inside. Eva tested the way the skirt moved swaying her hips to and fro. Occasionally the silk would rise up just a touch revealing the skin of her thighs for only a moment. Joseph memorized the way it looked. Jacob elbowed him. 

“You listening, Joe?” He grumbled. Joseph nodded and hummed in acknowledgement but never took his eyes away from Eva. Jacob hit his brother harder. Joseph finally looked, or glared, at him. 

“Yes, I heard you, Jacob. The deputy is being a nuisance and Faith is failing at her job.” Joseph reiterated. Jacob looked at his brother skeptically as he went back to ogling the child. 

“So you got the gist of it. But were you listening to the details?” He asked, unamused and unconvinced that he was being listened to. For a moment it looked like Joseph would blatantly lie to his face, but in the end he remorsefully shook his head. 

“I’m sorry, brother. I was distracted.” Jacob held back the urge to gag. Watching that kid get fitted into a dress shouldn’t distract him at all. It shouldn’t distract  _ anyone _ . His brother was somehow getting worse. 

“She's certainly growing into her birthing hips." Yup, _ even worse _ . Jacob scowled at Joseph. 

"First, don't ruin hips for me. Second, that is a  _ child _ . Third, never utter those words to me ever again." Joseph laughed and patted his brother’s arm, like it was no big deal he wanted to molest a child. 

“Apologies, brother. I never did show you any photos of Melissa. She was beautiful.” He deflected. They both knew it. He didn’t care if Joseph’s dead wife had a body like Nikki Minaj,  _ that _ on the stool, being sewn into a white dress, was a child.

When the fitting was done Eva looked like a flower girl. The silk it was made out of was white, just like everything else in the compound, with an intricate lace overlay on the skirt and below the elbows on the sleeves. A cloth belt was tied around her waist. She was given a matching headpiece that was made out of the same lace that was on her dress. It was all very bridal. She finally stepped off the stool she had been on for ages and left the room. Joseph was right outside, he happily welcomed her and told her how beautiful she looked in her dress. 

“Can I take a nap?” she asked as she rubbed her eyes. Joseph clicked his tongue and shook his head. She stifled a yawn. Why not?

“Sloth is an all too easy sin to fall victim too. I’ve still much to show you.” He put his hand on her back and led her away. Jacob followed behind them, he felt like a fucking chaperon. Making sure Joseph saved room for Jesus. What had his life come to? His brother wanted to bone a child. He was covering for Faith, and John was a constant state of freaking out. His family was falling apart at the seams. All he wanted to do was seclude himself in some mountains, train wolves, and _ kill Eli _ . Was that  _ so  _ much to ask for?

Preaching more of his rhetoric, Joseph brought Eva to the church. The priest had a lot to say and the girl didn’t have the attention span for it. She nodded along and even yesed him while she took in her surroundings. She wished she wasn’t stuck in the compound. Hope County was beautiful and all that was here were fences, dirt and white walls. As they entered the church she noticed the writing that covered the walls. He continued to lecture and she zoned out even more. Man, she really wanted a dog. Montana would be a great place to raise a dog. So much nature. Now that she killed for fun, they could hunt too. 

“My nose hurts.” She murmured, idly rubbing the bandage over her broken nose. Joseph must have heard her because he rubbed her back. 

“I’m terribly sorry about that. Would you like to have someone take a look at it?” He offered. Eva nodded. Seeing a medical professional would be nice after all the physical assault she had endured.

“Her nose is  _ broken _ . The bandage has to stay on for another two days. Three weeks for it to be fully healed.” Jacob interrupted. Eva glared up at him. The kid looked like hell. If he didn’t know any better he would have assumed his brother beat her. Black eyes, broken nose, bags under her eyes, bruises up and down her arms, and all wrapped in an almost wedding dress. He should kill her. Save her the pain and torment of being Joseph’s child bride. His brother would probably be pissed for a while but if he did it right Joseph would take it out on the deputies. Hell, he could probably make it look like  _ they _ killed her. It wouldn't be hard. Snap her neck and toss her body somewhere a deputy blew up. That wasn’t a terrible idea. Better now than later. 

“That sucks.” Eva rubbed at her eyes again. This poor girl wanted to sleep. 

“When I hold a service later, you’ll sit here.” Joseph said, gesturing at a spot that wasn’t among the pews. His brother was putting her with the herolds. This guaranteed that she would be othered by the rest of the flock. It was obvious that she was special to The Father; this just cemented it. 

“Okay. When is it?” Eva looked up at Joseph, maybe she could take a nap before. Or even get out of it entirely. 

“In about half an hour.” What? She held back a groan of annoyance. She didn't want to be rude but she was getting to the end of her rope. The creak of the church doors got her attention. Some of the flock were already filing in. They all looked homeless. Jacob lifted Eva easily and sat her down in her new designated spot. She didn’t look happy but didn’t protest. She was between him and John. When his youngest brother arrived, his face fell when he saw the young girl. He looked to Jacob for an explanation, like he understood this any better than he did. He just shrugged. Faith arrived a short while later, her mask of serenity nearly crumbling when she saw the girl.

The doors closed and Joseph took his place at the podium. Jacob wasn't paying attention to what his brother was saying, instead he kept an eye on the girl next to him. She tried to stay awake, but she started nodding off. She lasted longer than he expected, half an hour. The kid’s face was pressed into his side, sound asleep. Guess this was his kid now. That’s how children worked, right? They fall asleep on you and you adopt them? It was like when an animal imprinted. John could help him with the legal end of things, and the monetary end of it too. Would Joseph stop if Eva was his niece? It would be real fucked up if he didn’t. He had never thought about starting a family of his own. There was always way too much going on to really consider it. No one was ever truly ready to have kids. She was Jacob’s kid now. 

Jacob gently moved Eva, as to not wake the kid, so she didn’t slowly suffocate in his jacket as she slept. She was his kid now. If she was going to die it would be during the hunt, or in a battle, or in her sleep when she was over a hundred. That last one sounded the best. He watched John from the corner of his eye. His baby brother took off his stupid plane jacket and draped it over his new niece. Hell, maybe John would be interested in adopting her. John was a whore, but he could hold a conversation with someone. In that regard he might make a better parent. Jacob had never really held a significant relationship with anyone before. Probably due to his lack of social skills. Him raising this kid would probably only be detrimental to her. Not that the option of Joseph marrying her was better. Anything would be better than that. 

Then again, the kid would make for a great soldier. He knew a thing or two about that. The kid had good instincts, they just needed to be honed. She’d probably be a good successor to him one day. The kid would be ready to lead and train their men by the time he was old enough to kick the bucket. Kids liked dogs, right? That was a thing? She’d probably like the judges. It would be a good way to start her training. He would show her to shoot, to fight, hunt, kill, sacrifice. Get her to work with the judges. Give her some leadership skills. Show her the world was weak and that she would be a leader they needed. The kid could be strong. She will be strong. Hell, she was pretty strong right now for a kid. At the very least she would be stronger than John. He looked over at his weakest brother. He was shivering without his dumb jacket. He was lucky he was kin. He would have been one of the first culled. Not that he didn’t love John, he did. But if they weren’t brothers, and Jacob  _ wasn’t _ willing to die for him, he would have been fed to the judges in a heartbeat.

When the service concluded, Joseph looked to Eva. His heart was alight to think that his beloved was there with him during his service. While he did God’s work. His brothers were too busy waking Eva to see his expression go dark. She had slept through it. She had found his work so very uninteresting that she couldn’t stay awake? Not even for his sake. His Eva rubbed her eyes as Jacob woke her and handed John’s coat back to him. Luckily his faithful had already started leaving the church. Joseph knew he looked less than happy. She blinked a couple of times, looked around, then sighed. The Father approached his family. 

“I think the kid should get to bed.” Jacob said, the sun had really only just begun to set. But the kid had been through a lot. Physically and emotionally. She needed more rest than what she was getting. 

“Do you?” Joseph asked, crossing his arms. His tone was short and snappy. His brothers hadn’t seen this side of him in a long time. 

“I practically raised you, Joe. I know how to take care of a kid.” Jacob stated as he stood. He knew what was best for this kid.  _ His kid _ . He wasn’t going to budge no matter how much his brother protested. He slung Eva over his shoulder and began walking out. Joseph made an attempt to follow, but John grabbed his arm.

“We  _ really _ need to talk about this, Joseph.” He stressed. Joseph let out an annoyed sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“We  _ have _ talked about this, John.” He snapped. John looked a bit hurt but stood his ground. 

“No, Joseph. Look. I know you intend on marrying that kid. Moral and legal bankruptcy aside, it’d be a terrible thing to do to someone that young.” John sat Joseph down in the pews as Faith made her way towards them. He needed his older brother to see reason. Even if it just made Joseph wait five years. 

“I have to agree with John.” She chose this moment to speak up. Joseph scowled at her.

“Conceiving and birthing a child at her age is likely to kill her  _ and  _ the baby.” She tried to reason. If she brought back his memory of losing them the first time maybe he would listen. Joseph frowned.

“God will protect them.” With that, he stood and stormed out of the church, following after Jacob. This wouldn’t be like last time. This couldn’t be like last time. 

Jacob brought Eva to a new bedroom and dropped her on her new bed. They had finished remaking the room with all the stuff they had taken from her house. She noticed all this right away. The room even smelled like her. Jacob watched over her as she took in her new room and rummaged through her dresser for a change of clothes. She pulled out an over sized W.W.E shirt that would have been big on him. She looked up at him. 

“Uh, thanks for letting me sleep. And uhm, I’m sorry I called you a bigfoot.” She said, twisting the shirt anxiously in her hands. She seemed actually sorry for calling him that. 

“It’s fine, pup. Get some sleep.” Jacob turned and started out the door before stopping. He didn’t turn around, or even look at her.

“You like dogs, kid?” He asked. Eva cocked her head to the side. Was he a mind reader? Of course she liked dogs! What kind of sick-o didn’t?

“Yeah. They’re my favorite animal.” She answered, trying to play it cool. Jacob only grunted in response, left, and closed the door behind him. Was he going to get her a dog? She hoped it would be a big dog! She went to lock the door but found that there was none on the door. She opened it and saw that there  _ was  _ a lock on the  _ other  _ side. That was distressing. If Jacob  _ did _ get her a dog she wouldn't have to worry about it. With that thought she tucked herself into bed. The room was nice and not white. After she got her dog she hoped her grandpa would come get her. This place smelled of body odor and piss. She couldn’t place what it was but something else had her on edge too. Hopefully Grandpa would get her soon.


	10. In fighting

Dodger kicked the door to the jail open with the last of his strength. Too much walking. He felt gross as he trudged himself to the infirmary. Will power was the only thing that kept him going and that gave out as soon as he found a cot. Walking across the county left him drained both physically and mentally. Sharky just existing took a toll on his mind. Having Jess there too didn’t help much. Every time she opened her mouth, he wanted her to peg the hell out of him. No, bad brain. Now wasn’t the time to think about that. He was too tired. His legs were tired, and his brain was fried. Oh god he would have to bring up his conversation with Faith. Her offer. He groaned in mental pain. Fuck all of this. He just wanted to sleep. He knew that ultimately, they would go for the deal. Getting that child  _ away _ from the pedophile was  _ everyone’s _ top priority. The clock was ticking and he knew he didn’t have time for sleep, or even a nap. Maybe his body would just give out. As he laid there he started to doze off, maybe he wouldn’t wake up. The jail was dark, quiet, and cool, the perfect conditions for a well earned nap. That was a nice thought. For the first time in a while, he smiled. Sleep. A loud crash of the door interrupted his inner peace. As quickly as the door was opened two raised voices entered the building, Miller and Cooper. Oh no. Why them? Why now? Just why? What had done to God to deserve this? 

Miller was just screaming nonsense while covering her ears. She made her way to Lindsey’s lab. Cooper quickly followed behind her lecturing her about something. Dodger’s brain wasn’t working quite yet. He had no idea what they were yelling about. All he heard was loud. Whatever it was, it was probably dumb. He was almost one hundred percent sure it was about Cats. Not the animal, that would make too much sense. No, the creepily horny musical. There went his nap. 

“Why would you ever think that was a good idea?!” Cooper stressed. Dodger blinked, finally awake enough to comprehend speech. Cooper looked like he was going to tear out his hair if it was long enough to do that. Instead all the stress was high in his shoulders. 

“I didn’t think it was a big deal! No one told me how serious things actually were!” She shouted back, her face red and tear stained. Uh oh, whatever they were arguing about must have actually been serious. They never argued to the point of tears. This was definitely not about Cats, or at least he hoped not. 

“You were fucking _John Seed_ for _two years_ and told _no one_?!” Cooper screeched. Miller held back a sob. _Oh shit._ _Fuck_. _Oh my god_. _They’re all fucked. Fuck. What did she do?_ No he knew what she did and who. But _why?_ John was gross. He looked like a slimy little weasel with a tiny dick. She could do better than that. 

“Shut up!” She shouted back. She tried to push past Cooper when she realized that the way she was going was a dead end. Dodger kind of felt bad for her. She probably didn’t pay attention at any of the meetings. Cooper should have given her his notes. No, he probably should have summarized the meeting for her verbally. 

“No! You’re gonna pee on a stick, young lady!” Copper shoved her back onto the cot next to Dodger. With all this going on that was a fairly reasonable request. Better safe than sorry. That baby would probably be the Antichrist, if John was the father. 

“I’m not pregnant, dipshit! I’d know by now if I was!” Miller tried to get herself up, but was kept in place by her older friend. But, would she though? It was agreed upon by literally everyone that she was only slightly better at thinking than Sharky. What a low bar. She probably  _ was  _ pregnant. Probably forgot to take her pills, if she even knew where they were. John had probably insisted on not wearing a condom. This is why you peg men. No pregnancy scare. Was he projecting? Yes, yes he was. It hurt to know that John "pencil dick" Seed was getting more sex than he was. What a cruel world. Could Miller consent? She wasn’t the brightest. He refused to believe that  _ Sharky  _ was capable of consenting and he  _ knew  _ Hurk wasn’t. It’s like saying your dog could consent, only perverts said that. 

“When was the last time you slept with him, then?” He hissed. Another reasonable question. Miller was quiet and looking away, guilty. Well shit, bitch got laid recently. 

“Before they went to arrest the cult leader…” She said, looking and sounding like a child who had broken grandma's urn, and vacuumed up the ashes to hide her tracks. It fell dead silent. Cooper choked on his words. Dodger didn’t know what to think. 

“That was like- That was  _ days  _ ago, Miller!” He shrieked and for once he was justified. 

“I’m not pregnant, Cooper!” said like a pregnant woman. 

“You were fucking my college bully for two fucking years and you will pee on this stick to make sure you aren’t pregnant!” Cooper knew John from before all this? John was capable of bullying someone? Torture yes, school yard bullying no. John was the kind of guy that would get bullied and threatened to kill everyone while crying. Then the school would get involved and there would be a home investigation. He was getting off topic. Cooper shoved the pregnancy test box into Miller’s hands.

They kept fighting for who knows how long before Miller took the stick to the bathroom. She probably actually needed to pee and couldn't justify not taking the test. Afterall, she wasn’t pregnant. Yeah right. Oh dear lord, Miller was going to be a mother. Cooper was going to have to take care of her  _ and  _ the kid. Wonder how Pratt would feel about that. Those two were a thing right? Yeah he was pretty sure. Nap ruined, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to convince his body to keep going. He looked over at Cooper who was standing just outside the bathroom door, angry and impatient tapping his foot. He looked like a mother-in-law when he did that. Ha, John was fucked. Even more so than before. If she was pregnant Cooper would probably kill him with his bare hands. Dodger would watch that. Fucker deserved it. Not using a condom like a jackass. Motherfucker probably would poke holes in them even if he did use them. That whole family was fucked in the head. Who did shit like that? The kind of guy who has a pedophile for an older brother. Oh, his other brother was a cannibal wasn’t he? Somehow John was still the bigger piece of shit.

“Hey, Coop. Could you grab everyone for me? I don’t think I can stand anymore.” His voice was beyond tired. Cooper looked at him with a genuine concern that Dodger appreciated. 

“Sure.” He said with a nod and left to get everyone. 

“When Miller comes out, don’t let her leave.” He called, halfway out the door. There wasn’t much Dodger could do in this state. But sure maybe words would stop her. Dodger laid back down and watched the door swing back and forth. He tried to ignore the sounds coming from the bathroom. Didn’t want to know. It was quiet for a few minutes, the only sound was her tapping her foot against the tiles. When she came out she seemed much calmer. Seeing that her caretaker was gone, she turned to Dodger with a weary smile. She showed him the test awkwardly, negative.

“I told him I wasn’t pregnant.” She said, waving the little stick in the air. She gave a pained laugh. They didn’t know each other that well. He gave her a thumbs up and a forced smile. They both stood there in silence waiting for Cooper.

“I really didn’t know John was… Like how he is, I guess.” She said breaking the silence. Dodger looked at Miller in disbelief. He wanted to just stop talking. 

“That he helps to  _ run _ the cult?” The brunette looked skeptically at the younger deputy. 

“Or that he  _ tortures  _ people? Where was the disconnect?” He continued. He needed to know. What was she thinking? Miller just stared at the negative test in her hands. Oh, she wasn’t. 

“He was always so nice and charming around me. I guess he was probably just using me.” She said with a bitter smile. She sat on the edge of the bed he was on. Dodger put his hand on her shoulder and rubbed it.

“It’ll be okay, kid.” Dodger watched as Miller started tearing up. Great he would have to deal with this. Where was Cooper? 

“Two years of my goddamn life, wasted on that bastard.” She rubbed the tears that were threatening to fall away with her sleeve. This was way more information about Miller than he ever needed. Cooper better get back soon. If not he was probably going to say the wrong thing and make it worse. Because yeah, she was dumb and emotional and he only felt a little bad and he was bad at helping. When his sister Minnie got upset she would tell him to go away because he sucked at comforting her. That was fair. It was true. Cooper get your ass in here  _ now _ .

“Fucker was probably cheating on me too.” Miller sniffled. Oh if she wanted to talk shit on him he could actually do that. Dodger was opening his mouth to join in the shit talking when Cooper returned with the other deputies and the sheriff.

“Oh thank god, Cooper!” Dodger sighed with relief. There was a god. Miller lifted the test into the air proudly. Too proudly for someone who fucked a cultist but whatever. 

“I’m not pregnant but my relationship was based on a mountain of lies and I feel horribly used.” She sobbed. Cooper wrapped her into a tight hug. She sobbed into his uniform loudly. He petted her head to comfort her. Dodger coughed and tried to shift away from the two, looking anywhere but at them. To say he was uncomfortable would be an understatement. Now the police force was congregated in the infirmary. 

“Any news, Dodger?” The sheriff asked, his voice shaking only slightly. The deputy sighed and sat himself upright. His back hurt. He needed one of those icy hot patches that Shaq shills. 

“Your house was trashed. Everything that had to do with Eva was taken. No clues there on where she was taken to, but she was taken.” The sheriff leaned against the wall, head in his hands. Dodger let out a long exhale. He wished he had good news. 

“It gets worse. On the way back, we encountered Faith.” Tracey scoffed.

“What did that bitch say?” She spat. One of the Rooks, Bea, shoved Tracey.

“Stop talking about her like that, dammit!” She shouted. Oh no what did he start? 

“Rachel is  _ dead _ , Bea! She isn’t coming back!” Tracey shoved Bea back, only to get hit back. Who the fuck was Rachel? Someone in the cult?

“Fuck you! I’m not giving up on her!” She spat. Alice, the other Rook, moved between the fighting girls. He really did open a can of worms. He was tired and regretted everything. Only a nap and getting pegged would make him feel better. He was a simple man with simple needs. One need being for everyone to shut up and let him talk. 

“You should! She’s just going to ruin you, like she does everything else she touches!” Tracey tried to grab at Bea, only being held back by Alice. No one moved to help her. Miller was still sobbing and if Cooper let her go she would fall apart or cling to him, which was worse. Much worse. Sorry Alice. But not really. 

“Fuck you, I still love her!” Bea hissed, clawing for Tracey’s eyes. Alice shoved her sister across the room, finally fed up with their shit. 

“Both of you need to  _ stop _ !” She shouted, looking  _ completely  _ done.

“She’s just as much of a monster as the rest of the fucking cult!” Tracey yelled. Alice was glaring daggers at her.

“ ¡Cierra la puta boca!” Dodger shouted over all of them, catching their attention. He needed quiet. 

“We have bigger problems than Bea and Miller having bad taste in partners! Joseph Seed wants to put a baby Eva!” The young man bellowed. Everyone went pale, quiet and Whitehorse nearly fainted. Dodger rubbed his face. He was always the bearer of bad news. 

“When Faith showed up, she offered me a deal. She hands Eva over to us, and we give her a safe place to stay, since Joseph is going to want her dead for it.” Nobody spoke. By god, what was there to say? He was blunt. Joseph Seed wanted to molest the sheriff’s grand-baby. No other way of saying it that would soften the blow. It wasn’t the kind of blow that should be softened. What they needed was to put a bullet in Joseph’s head. 

“Apparently he’s convinced that Eva is his dead wife brought back from the dead.” This situation was so dumb, and fucked up. Who thinks like this? 

“We have to take it.” The sheriff said, beyond desperate. Tracey looked at the old man incredulously.

“What?! How can you say-”

“I will not allow that monster, Joseph Seed to- to… To  _ rape _ my granddaughter!” The old man’s shouting stopped as he was forced to vocalize his worst fears. Again, everyone went quiet. It was hard to argue with that. With how dire the situation was. Poor Whitehorse, his only family at the  _ mercy  _ of the cult. 

“Dodger. Get back out there and tell Faith she can stay anywhere she’d like if she brings my Eva back to me.” The old man’s voice was shaking. He just wanted his granddaughter safe, and back with him. He looked absolutely terrified, and not without reason. Dodger nodded and stood up. His legs ached in protest but he willed himself through the pain. Work had to be done. The moment he stepped out the door his blood began to  _ boil _ . 

Thomson… It was motherfucking  _ Thomson _ . That asshole was leisurely walking without a care in the world towards the jail with  _ Sharky  _ of all people. The dumb ass arsonist was tucked under the deputy’s arm in an oddly intimate fashion. Dodger watched them, anger growing. Thomson made eye contact with him and had the audacity to  _ fucking wave _ at him. Hand to god, he had blacked out in rage. He must have ran at the other deputy in a manner not unlike the angels they fought, screaming incoherently the entire time. No memory of beating the other man, fists colliding with his face, blood flying everywhere. 

“Where have you been, you cunt? You should be dead!” He may have screamed in English. Apparently it had been a one sided fight, with Thomson just smiling and laughing like a lunatic between the punches. He didn’t hear Sharky freak out and do his best to pull him away from the bloody man. Jess must have come in at one point to help Sharky because Dodger was thrashing like a feral animal and screaming obscenities in Spanish. He had no recollection of being dragged away while Thomson sat up and grinned like the Cheshire cat covered in his own blood and missing a tooth. He didn’t remember thinking about how the man in front of him wasn’t Thomson. Thomson wouldn't have been strangely calm despite the beating he received, He wouldn't have seemed to be having the time of his life. There was a cold dead look in the man’s eye that wasn't there before, just watching him like a predator stalking its prey. Like he was fully in control. No, he didn’t remember any of that.

Jess must have shoved him into a cot in one of the cells, while Sharky brought Thomson to the infirmary. Thomson whispered something into the arsonist’s ear and then laughed. Sharky didn’t look amused as the deputy winced in pain. 

“What was that about?” Jess asked as she handed him a glass of water.

“I don't know, I blacked out.” He told her as he took the glass from her. She rolled her eyes. She didn’t believe him. He took a sip of water guiltily. Sharky came out of the infirmary all worried and headed over to them. He looked more shaken than Dodger would have expected. Were him and Thomson close? Deputy Thomson was usually the one that responded to calls about his fires. If anything he would have expected him to dislike the man. Sharky looked angrily at Dodger. That was weird. He hadn’t hurt Sharky at all had he?

“The fuck was that about, Dep?” He asked loudly. What was wrong? Jess put her hand on Sharky’s shoulder. Ok this was getting fucking weird. What was going on? Did Thomson have cancer or something?

“He hasn't slept in a while and blacked out.” Jess defended. He was missing something. 

“I’m still mad though. He beat up my boyfriend.” Sharky complained, crossing his arms childishly. Dodger was floored

“What?” the deputy asked.This made no sense. He must have passed out and he was having a nightmare. His mind was running a mile a minute. He looked over Sharky like there would be a clue to how this had happened. It was Thomson.  _ Thomson _ . The man who got angry when his paperwork didn’t have the properly colored paperclip on them. Everything on that man’s desk was super clean and color coordinated and it was terrible. He would work like a robot until his shift ended then he would just bail. He never hung out with anyone outside of work. Well neither did Dodger, but Dodger was a normal person and would at least go for drinks with them. During one of their outings to the spread eagle he asked about it. They all just kind of looked at him and started laughing. 

“He doesn’t do the whole _ work friend _ thing.” Alice explained. 

“Yeah, the closest thing to a friend he’s got is Cooper.” Bea laughed and nudged the aforementioned man who was sitting next to her. 

“We both just have respect for organization and cleanliness.” He stated in a rather bored tone.

“He probably spends his time like, licking stamps, or being a closet Jefferey Dahmer.” Phoebe said.

“Don’t talk like that, there has been an increase of missing people lately.”

“What, is it specifically gay men that have been going missing?” 

“They don’t  _ need _ to all be gay for him to be a serial killer. He would have the perfect cover.” Bea added. 

“I’ve been to his apartment once before.” Cooper said.

“I had to return his tape measure, he did have a frame of stamps on his wall.” He continued. What Dodger gathered is that Thomson was a loser that had no friends. 

“Did you fuck him?” Bea asked, leaning over the counter to get a better look at Cooper. He put his head in his hand.

“No, I don’t mix business with pleasure.” 

“But what about Pratt?” Phoebe asked, setting her drink down.

“What  _ about  _ him?” Cooper asked, clearly he had a thing for Pratt. Phoebe blinked up at Cooper.

“You- you talk about him all the time and have me take secret pictures of him, since my desk is next to his?” Bea started screaming excitedly and lightly hitting Cooper on the back.

“Yes, go get that dick, bitch!” She was very interested in other people’s sex lives for some reason. 

“Does he have friends?” Dodger asked.

“He has Sharky, but I don't think that counts.” Alice said.

“I feel for him, he always has to deal with Bowshaw’s crazy shit.”

“Better him than us.” Bea pointed out. Phoebe made a face at her drink and pushed it away.

“I feel sick.” She muttered. As it turned out he really did have Sharky. It was a weird combination that could only really have occurred at the end of the world. Nothing added up.

Dodger blinked back to the present. Sharky looked confused. 

“What do you mean what?” he asked. 

“You and Thomson, when did that happen?” Dodger clarified.

“Like almost a year ago, why?” he said nonchalantly.  _ What? _

“A _year?_ I didn’t know that.” That was longer than he even _knew_ the guy. _That long_ and no one in the department knew about it?

“I did.” Jess teased. He shot her a glare, he didn’t need to be ganged up on now. She grinned back, clearly enjoying his torment, then winked. Oh, he really wanted her to bend him over later and peg him till he passed out. That would make for some good sleep. 

“We weren’t keeping it a secret or nothing. He likes to keep his work and private life separate”

“You  _ were _ his work life.” Dodger hissed. Everything coming out of Sharky’s mouth sounded like bullshit. A headache started to form. 

“Yeah, we thought that was weird.”

“Is that why he never brought you in?!” He screeched. Sharky shrugged.

“It’s not like anyone else showed up when he didn’t. So we thought it was cool.”

“Odio tanto mi vida…” Dodger groaned, head in his hands. He needed a nap. 

“You’re one lucky son of bitch, Sharky” Jess said. The arsonist just grinned. Things really just worked out for him didn’t they? Thomson emerged from the infirmary, face all bandaged up and sauntered over to their little group. He was just … So different. Even the way he moved was more confident and relaxed. He draped himself over Sharky’s shoulders. He was a bit taller than the other man and did so easily. He started nudging at the other’s neck with his nose and just being overly affectionate. If Dodger believed in the supernatural, he would have that Thomson had been switched out with a doppelganger or a shape-shifter. The creature in front of him was so affectionate with the arsonist that Dodger felt the need to look away. 

“Thomson, not now.” Sharky said, his voice rising with embarrassment as Thomson started kissing at his ear. At least one of them had shame. Thomson laughed in a similar way to when he was being beat up.

“Deputy Dodger, You mind if I borrow my man for a bit?” Dodger could hear the wink in his voice. He refused to look at the man. 

“Yeah, whatever, fine. Come one Jess.” He said, drawing the line at Thomson getting more sex than him. He headed straight for the exit and Jess followed behind him. New Thomson was an ass. At least before he was just quiet and polite most of the time. Now he had to go out and find Faith. That might take a long time. He wanted that. That would help get his mind off what he just witnessed. Well, there was Faith right there, just outside of the jail. She opened her mouth to speak to him. Nope, not dealing with that. 

“Don’t. We’re agreeing. You can bring her to the jail and stay here. You’ll be safe.” Dodger said. Faith smiled at him and nodded.

“ETA?” He asked.

“I need to get her away from Joseph long enough. A few days at most. I’ll be seeing you.” With that, she vanished in a puff of smoke.

“Thank god, I’m going to sleep!” He shouted before trudging his way back and collapsing on the cot furthest away from the infirmary. He didn’t need to know what was going on with Sharky and Thomson if they were still here. 

“You ok?” asked Jess. He said nothing, only gave her a thumbs up. With that he fell asleep. Fuck everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neither of us speak Spanish, but Dodger is supposed to be half Hispanic.


	11. Trauma, then bonding

Eva sat with her parents and grandparents. They all sat in the Montana wilderness on a pier by a clear pristine river. The five of them fishing together. They were all happy and laughing. She leaned against her mother who wrapped an arm around her. She smelled of warm sunscreen and hummed a song. Hanging her feet off the pier she tapped them against the surface of the water, watching the ripples spread. The water was only slightly too cold. She looked up at the clear sky, the sun high above her.

It wasn’t the afternoon, it was the crack of dawn. Nancy shook her awake, the old woman’s bones protesting loudly. Her skeleton didn’t want to be a part of her, it was wet and ready to hatch. Eva blinked sleepily and she could feel the bags under her eyes. That dream had been nice.

Right when Eva got out of bed Nancy grabbed her roughly by the arm and pulled her into the empty hall. The wooden floor was cold underneath her bare feet. With strength that was unknown to most old women, Nancy dragged her to an unfamiliar part of the compound. They entered an unfamiliar bathroom. The shower was already going and there were unfamiliar bottles and soaps. Nancy shoved her head under the stream of water. Eva fought and pulled herself out from under the stream

"Nancy, what the hell? I can bathe myse-" Nancy struck Eva across the face, snapping her head to the side. Stinging blossomed across her healing face, reigniting the old wounds. Tears began to swell in her eyes. 

"Do not swear in a holy place." The old woman hissed. Eva couldn’t bring herself to move as Nancy stripped her of her clothes. 

“Into the shower, girl, I don't have all day.” Her bony fingers dug into Eva’s bruised shoulder, daring her to protest. It felt like her fingers would pierce her flesh like a rotten fruit. Wordlessly she stepped into the shower. Nancy took a generic bar of soap and began washing her. Eva just let her. Nancy was muttering to herself the entire time, all criticisms of the girl she was washing. She wasn’t gentle in her scrubbing either. The old woman scrubbed her skin till it was raw. Reopening a scab or two. Eva began silently crying watching her blood run down the drain. She wanted to go home. 

“Be still, child.” Nancy ordered as she put down the washcloth and picked up a razor. Eva shook. Nancy lifted one of her arms and lathered up her armpit with soap, not even shaving cream, and began clearing her skin of the little hair she had grown. It felt weird to have someone else move a razor over her. It didn’t hurt but she couldn’t help but want to squirm. Nancy held her arm tighter as she felt the girl try not to fidget. When she was done she moved to the other arm then her legs. The water was getting colder now. When she finished both legs Nancy leaned back and stretched her shoulders. They popped and cracked in ways that must have meant her bones were breaking. They must have been done now. Eva moved for a towel the old woman had next to her.

“Did I tell you to move?” Nancy spat out. Eva flinched back. They weren’t done?

“But-” She started in a meek voice.

“I will tell you when we’re done.” Nancy tapped the girl’s leg a few times.

“Open your legs, dearly.” What?  _ No _ . When the thirteen year old didn’t do as she said Nancy’s tone darkened. 

“It will be easier if you don't fight me, child.” Eva shivered and slowly spread her legs. She felt violated as the woman that had once taken care of her stared at her most intimate area. Hot tears welled up in her eyes, her sinuses stung. She could feel the large tears drip down her face amongst the now cold water that sprayed her. Nancy took a razor to the tiny bit of hair between her legs. If what happened before felt weird this felt  _ wrong _ . Her legs trembled. The old woman continued on, seemingly enjoying herself. Eva bit her lip and just waited for this to be over. 

Eva didn’t know how much time had passed but eventually Nancy was done. She stood up with many creaks and turned the water off. The girl wasn’t allowed to dry herself. She was aggressively rubbed down with a towel. Nancy took her by the arm again and dragged her to where a new set of clothing sat. With a blade no longer at her skin, she put up a fight once more when the woman wanted to dress her. She hit at the woman she used to trust. Eva pulled her arm free.

“You can’t do this to me-” She yelled. But Nancy backhanded her across the face. She looked up in shock at the woman. Anger and a promise of consequences were in her eyes. 

“You  _ will  _ do as I say.” She then grabbed Eva by the hair and pulled her along again. Eva held the base of her hair, trying to lessen the pain, and staggered along. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Just stop. Please!” She pleaded. Tears fell from her face to the floor, her nose running. Her face felt hot. She was put in the same dress that had been made for her the day before, if it wasn’t the same, it was really similar. She was silent the whole time. When Nancy left the room she followed just behind her. 

“I think you forgot my underwear.” She said quietly. There was a chance that Nancy didn’t hear her. That actually might be the better option. Never before had the old woman made her uncomfortable. This was such a departure from the Nancy she had known for years. This  _ really  _ did remind her of episodes of Law and Order:SUV. Knowing that didn’t comfort her at all. The old woman glared down at her. She flinched away from her, getting ready to be hit again. 

“It’s not an important garment, you little harlot.” Nancy briskly walked away from her, leaving her there speechless. What had she done? The old woman left the building, clearly not wanting to be around the girl anymore. Now Eva was alone, feeling less than worthless. She hadn’t done anything. She held herself tightly, holding back even more tears as she trembled. She fidgeted in place and felt exposed without underwear. 

She eventually found her way back to her room. Luckily all her clothes were still in the drawers. She grabbed the first pair of panties she found and put them on. Already she was feeling a bit better. Would Nancy be mad if she changed her clothes? She closed the drawer and almost left the room. She touched the doorknob and looked back. If she stayed near other people Nancy wouldn’t hurt her would she? Nancy could go eat shit and die, she was going to wear what she wanted. After that, she slipped on a bra, a plain green t-shirt and her blue jeans. It was still early and cold, so she rummaged around the room until she found a grey zipper hoodie and shrugged it on. Some socks came next, then her dirty sneakers. She grabbed something heavy from the shelves in case Nancy tried to hurt her. 

She took this time to wander around the compound. It was obvious that she was going to be here for a while, she wanted to get familiar with it. It was still early in the day. Running her hand through her hair she frowned, it was unpleasantly dry without conditioner. She had her own bathroom, with her own soaps and shampoos that could have fixed this. Eva tried not to think about what had just happened. Her stomach growled. Oh right, food. 

The smell of food being cooked drew her attention, she followed her nose to a smallish building. Her stomach made noise again, trying to prompt her to get closer. She tried the door and as luck would have it, it was open. She peaked her head in and looked around. Part of her thought it might have been a bathroom. They had a lot of those here. But none of the homeless looking people used them. It was a dining area and some of the flock sat inside. No one was pooping, that would be weird. But Hope County had some weird people. 

Some of the people inside saw her and waved. Eva shyly waved back and went inside. The big dining room had two more doors, one that went outside and another that presumably went to the kitchen. No one stopped her as she went into the kitchen. Inside she saw a few older women cooking up a storm. There did seem to be a lot of people living here. Also, Jacob was there in the corner making himself something if the size of the pot was anything to go by. Eva trotted herself over to the not so scary anymore man and watched what he was doing. He looked at her from the corner of his eye and kept working silently. He was making oatmeal  _ wrong _ . Eva guessed that bigfeet can't cook. He had put  _ way  _ too much milk in it. It looked like some kind of gross ass cheese sauce.

"Do you want some help?" She blinked up at the veteran. He grumbled something under his breath.

"No, I'm fine." Eva pouted. He was most certainly not fine. The frustration clearly on his face. She located the oats after a brief search of the pantry. She elected to ignore Jacob and began dumping more oats into his pot.

"Hey!" He tried to shove the girl away, resulting in her biting his hand. He wrenched it back from the girl's mouth and glared at her. She gave him a toothy grin. 

"You put too much milk in. It was going to be all watery and gross." She said, capping the container of oats.

"It's supposed to be that way. Makes the ration go further." He said through clenched teeth. It didn’t matter if he didn’t  _ want  _ help he was going to  _ get  _ help. He watched the girl continue to ignore him, gathering up vanilla extract, brown sugar and some fruit. Despite his earlier protesting, he allowed the small girl to bully him away from the stove. Eva mixed the sugar and vanilla into the pot, stirring constantly. She could save these oats, whether Jacob wanted her to or not. 

"Can you get some bowls?" Eva asked. Again, Jacob grumbled, but returned with two bowls and spoons. The girl distributed the oatmeal into the bowls, one much more full than the other. She was a growing girl after all. She then dropped the mixed berries on top. Yum, just how she liked them. A woman swooped in and began cleaning up before Eva could. She thanked her, she wasn’t rude like Jacob. The woman just smiled and nodded. These people seemed nice. She followed Jacob out to the dining hall when he picked up the bowls. He took the bowl she made for herself and handed her the other. Dick.

"You cook for yourself a lot, kid?" He asked. Eva shrugged.

"My grandpa wasn't ever the best at it, so I learned the basic stuff on my own. When he wasn't home, Nancy refused to feed me so it was either learn more or not eat." She picked up a spoonful of oatmeal and blew on a few times before shoving it into her mouth. The spoon loudly clacking against her teeth was nothing compared to the warmth of food. She didn’t realize just how hungry she was. Too bad she didn’t have  _ her  _ bowl. Jacob watched the kid as she ate. She didn't spill any on herself, but still ate like she hadn't had food in days. When had they last fed her? He guessed it was just a normal part of a girl's growing up, or they just never fed her dinner. Wait. No, they didn’t, did they? That kid hadn’t eaten since the sandwiches. He’d have to get on top of that if he was going to keep her. John sure as hell wasn’t going to do it. He was never around. What a dead beat. Good thing he didn’t have kids of his own. The oatmeal she'd fixed was a little salty, but that was more his fault for putting almost a tablespoon of it in. Maybe he would learn how to cook. He could bond with Eva and keep her away from touchy Uncle Joseph. 

"I could teach you how to cook." She offered, her bowl empty already. Jacob raised an eyebrow at the kid.

"Cooking isn't a soldier's main priority." He said gruffly. He didn’t want her to know he wanted to learn. 

"It should be when your food tastes like shit." Eva watched the giant man chortle, something that had the flock whipping their heads to look at him. She guessed he didn't laugh much. The red haired man shook his head. The other people in the dining room went back to their food. The pup told it like it was. He respected that. 

"Maybe if I can get a real break from my work you can show me a thing or two." He said, ruffling her hair. His hands were the size of her head.It reminded her of when her dad would put his hand over her face when she threw temper tantrums. He would lightly hold it against her, pretending to not hear her, until she calmed down. A homeless man collected their dishes when they were done eating. Jacob stood and stretched, his back and shoulders popped, not like Nancy's but it was still unpleasant. She grimaced, she would never be used to that sound. 

"Come with me, kid. I got something for you." Jacob said, motioning for her to come along. Eva bounced to her feet, was it the dog he mentioned before? She followed behind the soldier wanting him to move faster. There was a car parked in front of the church, was that Jacob’s car? Must have been because he gestured for her to open the back door. Eva looked at him warily, last time she was in a car with him he brought her here after assaulting her. After a beat or two, she opened the door. 

Making the highest pitched whine that she could, she started crying. Though this time it was from joy. She pulled the pure white wolf puppy from the back seat and clung to it. The puppy lapped at her happy tears, clearly already as much in love with her as she was with it. She happily cried louder and sat on the ground with her back against the truck. Jacob watched the girl sob with emotion and curl herself around the judge he brought her. At least he knew she liked it, there was no mistaking that. He cracked a smile when she buried her face in it’s coat and rambles incoherently thank yous and praises for the pup just existing. He had no doubt that that was going to be the most spoiled judge that will ever exist.

When one of his best Judges had a litter of eight, he expected them all to be war machines. For the most part, they had been, except for the runt. Twice as small as the rest, he had been contemplating putting it down in all honesty. But he figured it would be better served as a companion for the kid Joseph was convinced was his wife. God fucking dammit. He'd been at such ease he forgot what his brother wanted to do with the weeping child on the ground. He just kept watching over her. The kid wasn’t going to stop anytime soon was she?

"I l-lo-o-ove hi-i-im." She sobbed, kissing the pup's face. It seemed pretty mutual as the judge's tail wagged to and fro so fast he feared it might come off. The puppy was all too happy to lap and slobber all over Eva's face. They were a good pair. 

Joseph emerged an hour or so later, preparing for his morning service. He paused when he saw Eva out. It was still relatively early, he had told everyone to let her sleep until morning mass was about to start. There she sat, fully awake, with a judge puppy in her lap. Jacob was also there with her, which wasn’t odd. Why was she awake though? She was petting the wolf while Jacob told her all about how to train it. That was good. She was nodding along with what his older brother was telling her. She'd gain valuable experience learning to take care of something like that. She'd be more practiced when their daughter returned to them. Then he noticed the red mark on her face. Someone had struck her. Who would dare lay a hand on his wife?

He strode towards them at a brisk pace. Eva and Jacob looked towards Joseph, and he offered them a tight smile. Reflexively, Eva picked the puppy up and held it away from Joseph.

"I'm keeping him. His name is Frodo and I love him." She said as she glared at him. She was protective over the ones she loved. That was an admirable trait. A good one for a mother to have. His expression softened.

"I'd never dream of taking away something important to you, Eva." Jacob snorted and leveled a serious sort of face at his brother. Still, Eva relaxed at the reassurance. She set Frodo back to the ground and made him sit, feeding him a treat upon his fulfillment of the command after a few tries. She was so patient. 

"I was more concerned about that mark on your face." He said softly. Eva pouted and rolled her eyes.

"Which one?" She asked stubbornly. Her bruises had not fully gone away and her nose was still bandaged. That didn't stop the angry hand print from sticking out on her otherwise pale skin.

"Who hit you, Eva?" Joseph asked again, more insistent. The girl shrugged. She looked uncomfortable, all the more reason to find the culprit. 

"Nancy was being weird this morning. She made me let her give me a shower. When I told her to go away, she hit me." Eva knelt down and began scratching Frodo's ears. The puppy rolled onto his back, and Eva was more than happy to give him belly rubs. She cooed at the wolf. She refused to say anything more about the incident.

Joseph nodded deep in thought. Nancy had already been through cleansing and atonement twice now, but it would seem her wrath and envy were still deeply attracted to her soul. He'd have to let John know she needed a more intense purification than normal. To not release her until he was sure she was clean. Of course knowing that John would do everything he could to ensure it did nothing to quell the fire that burst to life inside him, his own wrath threatening to bubble to the surface. He tried to keep his thoughts composed. It wouldn’t do any of his flock any good if his sin took a hold of him. He looked back to his little wife and at the mark on her cheek. How  _ dare _ Nancy not only disobey him in regards to Eva's sleep schedule, but to  _ strike _ his darling wife? That simply could not go unpunished.

Eva watched as the older man walked away from them, he seemed very tense. She looked back to Jacob as he let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. He looked a lot more tired than he had a few moments ago. She felt bad. Whenever Joseph came around, Jacob got a lot more exasperated. Maybe it was a normal sibling thing, she wouldn’t know anything about that. Jacob confirmed her suspicion when John came around. The soldier looked like his head was going to explode when he was present. Poor Jacob. 

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. Eva watched as John, who looked like shit by the way, stormed out of one of the buildings and towards them. Jacob looked like a headache was coming on. That man needed some Advil. John stopped only a few feet away from the two of them. His hair was a mess and he looked like he hadn’t gotten much sleep the last few nights, same dude. 

“Jacob, I need to speak with you privately.” The youngest Seed demanded in a very bratty tone. Jacob gestured to Eva and Frodo.

“I’m busy.” Eva gave John a cheeky grin and picked her puppy up. Yeah, Jacob didn’t have time for his tantrum. 

“Jacob got me a dog!” She said proudly, only half bragging. Frodo, as if on cue, barked. John ran his fingers through his hair and huffed. What a jerk. 

“Jacob, I need you to help me with something.” He crossed his arms and tapped his foot.

“Is this a  _ personal _ something, or a  _ project _ something?” Jacob mimicked John’s impatient stance. Eva tried not to laugh at John as she put Frodo back down, watching the puppy run around between the men.

“It’s a little of both actually. It’s about deputy Miller-”

“Oh! I love Phoebe!” Eva said. Whatever it was, maybe she could help. She jumped back when John got into her space. Maybe not. Frodo growled and snapped at John, making him move back.

“And how exactly do you know he-”

“Grandpa’s left me with her before. She and Cooper live in the valley. Way on the edge to the henbane.” Eva pointed in the general direction of the valley, or where she thought the valley was. She still had no idea where she was. John cleared his throat and attempted to fix his hair.

“Do you know where she is  _ now _ ?” John asked, straightening his lapels. Eva thought for a moment, looking at Frodo. She didn’t know  _ exactly  _ where she was but she hazard a guess.

“She’d definitely be with Cooper, wherever he is. I think Cooper has a crush on Pratt, so he’d probably be where he is.” Eva picked her pup up. John turned his attention back to his brother. She just wanted John to leave so Jacob could help her more. 

“I need you to-”

“I’m not an errand runner. If they show up in the whitetails, I’ll let you know.” Jacob walked away from them in the direction of his vehicle. Well this sucked. Eva pouted up at John.

“You scared him away! He was gonna teach me how to make Frodo kill someone!” She huffed, shaking her head. John sucked. 

“You’ve been very helpful, Eva. Thank you. Is there something you might need?” He offered. She would accept bribery. 

“Hand sanitizer.” The girl said without missing a beat. He laughed and nodded.

“I’ll be sure to get some to you.” He said before walking off, leaving Eva with only Frodo. It really sank in for her then, that the only people she really knew at the compound were a bunch of old guys. Wasn’t Faith supposed to be around somewhere? Where was she?


	12. Jail block tango

Not being able to find Faith in her bunker wasn’t unusual. Often she would be found wandering the Henbane for lost souls she might be able to save. So when she slipped away from her armed guards, they had assumed she was doing just that. None suspected that she was making her way towards the sinners in the jail. A trail of blood from her bleeding bare feet followed her as she walked up the road to the jail. Bodies of her fallen angels and men were still littered around the property. It unnerved her. She took a deep calming breath and continued on. Destruction from their failed attempt to take it back was still there. She stood in front of the door. Faith made no move to open it. This was her last chance to turn around. To go back to her new family. Hands shaking, she reached to open it. Her hand touched the door, she would be a traitor. The snake in the garden. No. _No._ _Not her_. There was already a snake in their garden. One that whispered to the Father, encouraging him to sin, telling him it was right. 

The door gave easily when she pushed it in. She had expected it to be heavier. This was a sign that what she was doing was right. She squared her shoulders as she walked in, giving the resistance members no mind. They didn’t move to stop her, they were ordered not to. Not that that truly meant anything. If one of them thought things would be better if she was dead there was nothing stopping them. It was evident that they didn’t want her here. She felt their glares and hatred stab into her. Keeping her face controlled, she gave them no indication she was scared. A child would be saved even if she was made a martyr for it. She opened the next door, the one to the building itself. It was easier to open than the first. Faith pushed back the thoughts of how alone she would be once this all was over. 

The door opened up and she saw Bea, she was as radiant and lovely as ever, who was talking to her sister. They didn’t notice her at first, she watched Bea. It felt like a dream, she hadn’t seen her in oh so long. The Sun that came in made her hair shimmer and dance as she moved. Even caked in mud her beauty shone through. A part of it was the kind of inner beauty that engulfed you and drew you in. Bea was as pure as a person could get in this modern day. She had her ‘sins’ but they were overshadowed by her love for those around her and the kindness she showed everyone. The sisters were calmly discussing the applications of sticky grenades and the advantages to making them. Faith smiled and lovingly looked at the deputy in front of her, that was so like her. She couldn’t stifle the laugh that left her when Bea suggested throwing a sticky grenade really,  _ really _ hard so that it would stick to John’s plain while he was in the air. She loved this woman so much. 

Bea turned her head and froze when she saw Faith standing there laughing like how Rachel used to. Faith looked up at her, watching the myriad of emotions flash across her face. For every good emotion there was an equally bad one. Hurt, happiness, pity, excitement, sorrow. She had hurt her badly in the past. Bea excused herself from the room and left through the door at the end of the hall leaving just Faith and Alice alone. They watched her until the door shut with a click then looked at each other. Neither one of them spoke, just looked at each other then everywhere but each other. Alice finally broke the silence when she cleared her throat. 

“Hey, R-Faith. The sheriff is this way.” She spoke in an even, measured way that must have been difficult. Alice had been prepared for this, knowing her. In school she would rehearse all presentations in the mirror for hours to get them perfect. This probably wasn’t any different. She followed the blonde around the corner and through the door to a big open room. It was empty and cold with a big table in the middle with people around it. The old sheriff was leaning over it talking about whatever was on it, he had Virgil and Tracy on either side of him. Alice cleared her throat again getting their attention. The three of them looked up almost in sync to Alice.The Rook sister gestured to her with a nod of her head. Their eyes moved to her. Tracy’s face went from neutral to disgust when she saw her. She wasn’t surprised when hate and vitriol began spewing from the mouth of her former friend. Alice stood between Faith and Tracey, blocking the brunette.

“This isn’t the time, Tracey.” She said calmly and with authority.

“Fuck that! After everything she’s done?! You can’t just forgive her!”

“We  _ aren’t _ . She’s here for a purpose.” Faith felt a pang of guilt in her heart. She knew this wasn’t forgiveness for what she had done, but a part of her wanted back what they all had had before. Tracey opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced by the sheriff.

“Why don’t you go check on Dodger, Tracey? He’s been sleeping a long while.” He said calmly. Tracey kicked the table and pushed passed Alice on her way out. It was the best thing for her at the moment, but that didn’t mean she was happy about it. The door slammed behind the young woman. Alice moved to take Tracey’s place next to Whitehorse. Faith kept some distance between herself and the resistance members. 

Dodger shifted on the cot, he could hear distant voices and oh boy, were they angry. He had no intention of getting up or doing anything. He had done  _ plenty _ over the last few days. Nobody else was doing jack shit. He single handedly carried this resistance! Which was wild when one recalled that Eva was still in actual danger. It was like he was the only one that remembered. He turned over and tugged the blankets over his head. He’d walked halfway across this god forsaken county and made some damn good time on it too. He had a mean charlie horse in both his legs. He was taking the day off. He more than earned it. 

So much for a day off, as he heard the infirmary door slam open and cracked hard against the wall. Was no one in control of their emotions here? He clung to his cot as he heard Tracy stomp her way over to him. 

“Leave me alone!” His cries fell on deaf ears as she ripped him from his cot and he fell to the floor. Tracy was  _ pissed _ . 

“This is  _ your fault _ !” She sneered. Dodger, face firm against the tile, spoke.

“You sound like the Peggies.” He groaned. Maybe if she killed him he wouldn’t have to go into work. No, knowing his luck he would get reincarnated as Joseph’s kid and he would never be free. Wait. Oh God no. That would probably make Eva his mother. He was the only one doing anything about that! The very least he could puke on the man and one day suffocate the bastard in his sleep. 

Tracy kicked him on his back, this was workplace abuse. The deputy stared up at her with an empty, tired look in his eye. He knew he looked like shit. He felt like shit. He knew he wouldn’t be getting any sympathy from her. 

“You’re the one who said that  _ she _ could come here.” Dodger blinked slowly at her. 

“You gotta be more specific than that.” He pushed himself up to his feet. Everything hurt, great.

“ _ Faith,  _ you dipshit!” She spat at him. Dodger yawned, that was what this was about?

“Oh yeah. She’s gonna help us get Eva back. Hopefully before Joseph Seed can molest her.” The deputy curled back onto the cot. He was  _ going to get _ his nap if it was the  _ last  _ thing he did. Tracey pulled on his jacket. One hard slap on her hand was enough to make her stop.

“Leave him, Tracey.” Bea said from the couch across the room. Tracey whipped around to turn her anger on the lounging blond. Oh yeah, she was here too. She had been unusually quiet when she came in. 

“ _ You _ don’t get to say  _ anything _ !” Tracey snapped, coming to stand over the shorter woman. Bea said nothing, meeting her friend’s eye.

“You’ve been in her corner since we were kids! You’re just so- I- Ugh!” Tracey dropped down next to Bea. Head in her hands. The blond rubbed her friend’s back. This was hard on everyone.

“I know you hate her.” She said softly, looking at the floor. Tracey groaned and looked at her for a long moment.

“I know you still love her.” Tracey said, with less malice and venom than before. Bea gave her friend a wry smile.

“This sucks for the both of us.” Bea bounced herself up and off the couch, turning her attention back to Dodger. No. 

“Hey, Deedee! Wake-up was an hour ago. You should go let the big man know you’re alive.” Dodger groaned and pulled the blanket tighter around him. Why couldn’t the world leave him alone? Bea shook her head and sat down at the foot of his cot.

“So, yeah, Trace. I was like, half way into my workout when I sprung a leak. Blood was just flooding everywhere and-” Dodger smacked the blond with his pillow.

“Fine! Stop! You win, alright?” The deputy whined. Sitting up he stretched his legs, trying to minimize the pain. Bea took his baseball cap and flipped the snapback onto her own head. She pushed him as he slowly stood up, taking his spot on the cot. He sighed and rubbed his eyes before leaving the room. He ran a hand through his hair trying to tame the mess. Maybe he could get Cooper to cut his hair, he was the only person here that could be trusted with scissors. That would be nice. He’d ask when him and Miller got back from… Whatever they were doing. He seemed like the type to cut hair for fun. He’d cut Miller’s hair and it actually looked good. 

If nothing else could be said about the cult going crazy, he was definitely a lot closer to most of the deputies he normally didn’t speak with, or even work with. It was fucked up but it did bring them all closer. Except Thomson. Fuck Thomson. He didn’t remember assaulting him, but  _ boy _ did he wish he did. It probably was amazing. 

The man made his way to the cell block. He nodded to Alice as he passed her and approached the sheriff. They had been speaking with Faith, likely what her conditions would be and all the whens and hows of retrieving Eva. He didn’t give a shit. Well, that wasn’t true, he cared a shit ton. He just was tired, hungry, and sore. There was only so long he could do that without snapping. It took a toll on how much he could do in a day. 

“Good to see you up and moving, Bennett.” Whitehorse smiled at Dodger and clapped the young man on the back. Dodger grunted and nodded to the sheriff. If the man was anyone else Dodger would have snapped at him. He couldn't bring himself to do that to the older man. 

“We got any rations laying around, Whitehorse?” His question was punctuated by the sharp, angry growl of his stomach. The older man nodded.

“There should be some in the mess hall. But before you go.” He gestured to Faith. Dodger nodded towards the brunette before leaving. Yeah whatever, there she was, cool. 

Faith crossed her arms over her chest. It was getting progressively colder in the big room. Not a good time to not wear a bra. She shifted from one foot to the other, goosebumps rising on her skin. Alice and the old men continued to speak, more about her than to her. If they needed her input they would ask. Which cell they should keep her in, who should be in charge of watching her, that sort of thing. So she stood there quietly. 

“I think Bea would be the best to keep an eye on her.” Alice suggested. Was she doing this to be cruel? She didn’t remember Alice being malicious. Why did she want to taunt Faith with the mistakes of Rachel’s past? She must know how her actions from so long ago hurt her today. Especially where Bea was concerned. She’d made so many horrible errors in judgment when she was still so young. She was older now, and now those memories haunted her. The knowledge of what could have been. God may be forgiving in His mercy. But people were not.

Beatrice clearly was not over what happened all those years ago under the overpass. Truthfully, neither was Faith. When she had lashed out at the most important person in her life. It would take more than leaving the project to make up for it. Bea had been the last person there for her. The last person that cared about her safely and happiness. All that, long after everyone else had left. She understood why they left and knew she couldn't truly blame them. Bea had ignored the warnings of friends and family alike just to ensure Rachel had a shoulder to lean on. She didn’t expect anything in return, despite her feelings. Faith couldn’t imagine how badly that must have hurt her. She had taken those feelings, used them like the second Faith had, and trampled on them. Her feelings that Rachel, and now Faith shared then and still share now. She’d squandered it.

“You sure that’s a good idea, Rook?” Whitehorse asked, eyeing Faith suspiciously. Oh God,  _ he knew _ . Of course he knew. He’d arrested her before when she was strung out mid bender. He’d been there when Bea posted her bail. He’d watched them  _ grow up _ . It was doubtless that he knew Bea had feelings for her at one point. How could he not? More than  _ half  _ the county knew.

“I’m sure, sheriff.” Alice was firm in her conviction. Whitehorse nodded slowly. After all, Bea knew her the best, everyone else here wanted her dead. 

“Tag out, then. Have your sister come in.” Alice nodded and stepped out of the room. Faith felt like she’d swallowed glass. The waiting felt like hours, even though it was only a minute or two. Bea opened the door and walked with careful, measured steps. She purposely avoided looking at Faith. That stung. Whitehorse chuckled.

“So that’s where Bennett’s hat went?” Bea visibly relaxed, a brazen smile spreading across her lips and adjusted it with pride. 

“You know what they say, sheriff? Snapbacks are for douchebags and lesbians. Dodger just doesn’t fit the profile.” She shook her head and took a more casual stance, a bag of shovels slung over her arm. She was full of energy as she danced in place a little. So confident. 

“Alice said that she thinks you’d be the best fit for watching our… Asset.” Whitehorse pointed to Faith. Bea swallowed and looked like she was trying to play it casual. She cleared her throat and shifted uncomfortably.

“I’m not sure. If she thinks it’s a good idea, then I guess it is. You know she’s the one who thinks things through, not me.” She rambled. She stopped herself before she kept going, then shrugged and shifted again. Whitehorse opened his mouth to speak,probably words of encouragement knowing him. Before he could a resistance member burst through the door looking terrified. For a moment Faith thought the other Heralds had come to kill her and everyone else. 

“Sir! Thomson has completely lost it! He’s threatening everyone with a flamethrower!” Whitehorse looked at Bea and Faith. They all exchanged worried looks before Whitehorse nodded to the two women.

“We’ll be back in a little bit. You two wait here.” With that, he ran out with Virgil right behind him. Faith said a silent prayer for their safety in subduing that devil ridden man. Many of her men died viciously by that man’s bare hand. Bea blew a heavy breath out between her lips, making a raspberry noise when the men left. She seemed happy she didn't have to go out there.  Bea sat herself on the table the map was on and looked at Faith.

“Listen I-”

“Bea-” They cut each other off.They both stopped to let the other talk. Beatrice leaned back, hands resting on the table. Faith ran her hands through her hair nervously. There was a long silence between them.

“I’m sorry.” Faith said quietly after a while. She couldn't bring herself to look at the other woman. Nothing she could say could make up for what she’d done. She had been horrible. Attacking her because of her deep rooted self hatred. Rachel had wanted Bea to hurt, been consumed by pride and wrath. 

“I’m so,  _ so _ sorry, Bea.” She said again louder, her voice full of anguish, hiding her face in her hands as she felt tears coming. She couldn’t make any of this better. Faith waited for Bea to tell her she wasn’t forgiven. To tell spit all of her sins back in her face. It would be in her right, she deserved it after all. But, Bea said nothing. 

“Nothing I can do can make any of this right.” She tried holding the tears back.

“You’re right.” Was all she said. Faith was overwhelmed with emotion. Dropping to her knees in front of the deputy she started sobbing, the tears pushing through. 

“All I can do is try to help Eva. I want to be better.” she cried.

“You’re starting to be better by wanting to help the kid.” Faith shook her head, choking on her tears. Bea put her hand on Faith’s shoulder.

“Prove you can be better.” Bea said. Faith looked up at her. She could be, she could be better for Bea. She could save them, save them all from the collapse. Like the first Faith and use a gentle hand to show them the way. They could all be in the New Eden together and prosper. 

“I will be better. I swear to you.” 

“I believe you’ll try. I’ll vouch for you with the others. But this will be the last time. I can’t keep waiting for you to change. You have to prove to me you’re serious this time.”

“I will.” Faith stood up and Bea pulled her into a tight embrace. It was good to have her back. It took a moment but Faith returned the hug. 

Bea reluctantly released Faith from their embrace. She’d missed her best friend more than anything. This was dangerous, she knew she was playing with fire by letting her back into her life. She still loved Rachel, so much that it hurt. She knew that if it came down to it, she’d do anything to protect her. She knew she could be manipulated again. This time would be different, right? Bea would set up boundaries. She didn’t know if her heart could withstand another break like that. She’d been wracked with guilt for so long, thinking that Rachel had died that day she left her on the side of the road. She sat back on the table. Looking at Faith like she was the sun and the moon. In a Stroke of boldness she reached and cupped the other woman’s cheek with her hand, stroking her face with her thumb. She still loved her. 

The sheriff trudged back in with Thomson being dragged behind him. The devil possessed man had a black eye and busted lip, but still he grinned. The two women watched as Whitehorse threw the man into a cell and slammed it shut.

“Oh, come on Whitehorse you need me out there.” He sang, sounding more teasing then annoyed. 

“You’ll be allowed out once you stop being a menace!” Whitehorse shouted. He was done with the devil’s antics. 

“What happened to you, Thomson?” Whitehorse sighed looking at his formerly best employee. 

“I’m  _ alive _ .” The devil responded with a dangerous glow in his eye. It must have been a trick of the light. His tone was calm and cool, almost convincing. Faith would pray for them. Whitehorse shook his head then looked at the two girls. 

“Go on, get out of here. Go get my granddaughter.” He said, waving his arm towards the door. Faith nodded and gave Bea one last look before leaving the room, on her way back to her bunker.


	13. Something is happening

Flipping through the pages of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Eva sat on her bed with her new pet laying by her feet. Frodo was sound asleep. For now he was the perfect size to stay with her on the tiny beds in the compound, though he wouldn’t be like that for long. She needed a bigger bed if Frodo was going to stay with her, which he was. Joseph was pretty keen on giving her anything she wanted. Maybe she could convince him to get her a king size bed. It got cold here in the winter and the two could snuggle up when it got colder. Looking around the room, Eva realized she would need a bigger room for that bigger bed she wanted. She would have to ask for that too. She was at the part where Santa shows up when she heard the telltale sound of a radio crackling to life. Confused, she looked around her room for the source.

“Uh- Hey guys. It’s Miller. Uhm, I got some um, bad news.” Eva followed the sound of Phoebe’s voice to the little “vanity” someone had set up for her while trying to recreate her room. It was an old desk with a drawer, and a mirror that was hung above it. Opening the drawer she found a standard issue, police force, walkie-talkie. What was that doing in there? It was grey and a little beat up, but it seemed to work just fine. She brought it back with her to the bed and closed her book. 

“What’s up, Miller? You in trouble?” One of the Rook sister’s asked, her voice coming through all staticy. It was probably Alice, though she wasn’t totally sure. What trouble could Phoebe get into? She always had her helicopter mom, Cooper, around to keep her in check.

“U- Uhm, this is probably the worst way to, uh, tell you guys this.” Phoebe took a deep breath, audible over the speakers. Eva couldn’t help but wonder who else could be listening. The other deputies?

“You remember that pregnancy test that came up negative?” She sounded nervous and- Wait. Pregnancy test? Wasn’t Phoebe single? She never saw her with any men other than Cooper at department barbecues and stuff like that. Was she secretly a slut? Going from man to man, sleeping her way across hope county. One and done. Or was she having some sort of forbidden romantic affair going on? Was she sleeping with Jerome? He was a priest! That was inappropriate to say the least. He was married to the lord! This would be terrible for the community, Phoebe would be cast out and stoned to death.

Maybe Nick Rye. That might just be even worse. His  _ wife  _ was going to have a baby any day now. Now Phoebe had a little Wingman Rye growing inside her. What would Kim think? What would she do? Would she run away to live with her relatives in Canada? That poor baby would grow up never knowing it’s father. Or worse, knowing their father was raising some other woman’s kid in Montana. Then years later when they were eighteen they would come to Hope County and confront him! 

Eva gasped out loud, maybe she slept with Xander! They both were incredibly dumb. Maybe Addie had seduced poor innocent Phoebe one night and lured into bed with her and Xander. In the morning she had walked home feeling vulnerable and ran into that weird movie director and slept with him as well. Poor Phoebe, she had higher standards than that. It probably wasn’t consensual. He probably promised her a part in the live action Cats musical. Poor slutty, slutty Phoebe. 

The worst person it could be would be that man from the Government that no one liked, Burke? Barke? Bjork? Who cared. Either way he probably used his government connections to force her to sleep with him. She didn’t know much about him but he sounded like a jackass. Use protection kids. Like Oprah said “No is a complete sentence”. 

“Oh no.” Deputy Alice sounded exasperated. It sounded like she knew who the father was. Who was it?

“Oh my god.” That was Beatrice. Had to be, Hudson wouldn’t care enough to respond and there weren’t any other women. She was listening too. Maybe this was a girl’s only frequency?

“ _ No _ .” Cooper sounded pretty pissed. That was also unusual and- oh shit. Was Phoebe-

“It- It- Uhm, it was a false negative.” She sounded pretty close to crying. Who would have thought that the sheriff department’s resident baby would end up with one of her own. 

“Phoebe-” Cooper, sounded off first, still very upset. Eva  _ needed  _ to know who the father was.

“Who’s the fath-” Bea was second with a cut off question. Eva yelled when Bea was cut off. She was so curious! She had to know! They were just teasing her at this point! What else was she supposed to be invested in right now? A book she’s already read before? Joseph’s sermons? Those were boring! She needed something juicy! She needed drama and suspense! Then homeless people in the compound were all so boring! Joseph was so boring! Everyone was so boring! John was never around for her to pick on! Jacob was cool but he kept to himself and he  _ also _ wasn’t around!

“Oh, Miller-” Alice sounded more sympathetic than the others. It was hard to tell, since they were talking over each other. They needed to realize that people were listening and wanted to hear all of the dirty details. So rude. That stopped when choked sobbing came from, presumably, Phoebe.

“Hey, hey, hey! Okay. Look, it’s okay, Feebs.” Bea was talking again.

“It’s not so bad. We’ll all help you out. Even Dodger’s not so much of a dick as to not-”

“Can it, Bea. You’re the queen of bad decisions.” Cooper spat. It sounded like none of the men working at the department were the father. So all of her accusations still stood. Interesting. 

“What?” Beatrice sounded offended.

“You’re practically drooling over Faith whenever we talk about her.”

“I’m not  _ drooling _ , Cooper! I love her!” Huh. Eva thought Bea was in love with someone named Rachel. That's going to end in more drama too. Eva was living. And  _ Faith _ was involved. She hadn’t seen much of her but she could try to dig information out of her. 

“Bad. Decision.”

“It’s not a decision!”

“Enough!” Alice shouted into the radio.

“Look. Bea’s a little bit of a liability, sure. But she isn’t-”

“Says the one that wants to get piped down by the psycho in the mountains!” Bea snapped. Was that a euphemism for sex? Or did she need a plumber? That was a new phrase. 

“Alice! Come on! Not  _ you  _ too.” Cooper yelled, the radio clipping from his volume.

“It’s not- I don’t- I have a  _ type _ ! I’m sorry!” Alice sounded very defensive. Who was she talking about? Eva tried to think of anyone who might fit the description. The only one who came to mind was the town drunk her grandpa had to drive home sometimes. What was his name again? Ellie? Eliza? She couldn’t remember. He was a nice man but was a little too mountainy. Why did Cooper hate him? Did  _ he _ want the mountain man? Was the mountain man into men?

Did Jacob know him? Were they bigfeet together? Was Jacob dating him? Was Jacob the mountain plumber? No one else lived up there! So it was either Elsa or Jacob. Jacob didn’t seem like the kind of guy that could fix a sink. He couldn't even make breakfast. Didn’t the other guy make houses or something? He probably knew how to fix indoor plumbing. It was probably him. Wait wasn't he the one with the dead kid? Maybe that's why Cooper hated him. Did that guy kill and eat his own child? Wait, he’d be in jail if he did that. Maybe it was more of a personal dispute. Over cats. Him and Phoebe care  _ way  _ too much about that musical. 

“For real though, Feebs. Who’s the baby daddy?” Bea asked. The question that really mattered.

“I- It doesn’t matter. The asshole’s probably off with some Peggie whore right now. Fucking bastard never gave a shit about me.” Phoebe was still crying, but getting angrier as she spoke. Poor Phoebe! Though that didn’t narrow it down by much. Anyone was capable of cheating, if daytime television was anything to go by. That said, it did rule out anything accidental or forced. Which was good, she guessed. Maybe it was Ellen. But from how she was acting, it sounded like her relationship was  _ supposed  _ to be exclusive. Also, what was a Peggie? It sounded familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on where she’d heard it before.

“I miss Pratt.” Cooper said softly into the radio, sniffling. Were Cooper and Pratt a thing? It made sense in a weird way. Cooper always kind of struck her as the kind to like douchey and incompetent guys. Probably made him feel good about himself, being able to take care of people. But that also raised the question, where  _ was _ Pratt?

“Holy shit! All of you shut up and get back to work!” Deputy Bennett cut through the line, and it went dead after. Language mister, she was a  _ child _ . That didn’t stop her from watching Game of thrones when Nancy left HBO on, but  _ still.  _ It was the principle of the matter. She kept the radio around for a little bit before putting in on her vanity. Maybe they’d chat again later, maybe they wouldn’t. Still, it was a neat peek into the lives of her grandfather’s deputies. That said, she was still foaming at the mouth to find out who knocked Phoebe up. Maybe one of the Seeds knew.

Eva let out a scandalized gasp.  _ Maybe it was one of them? _ Joseph looked like the kind of guy to not use protection, and risk getting a young girl pregnant. Phoebe was  _ way _ too young for him! What a pervert! He was supposed to be a priest, like Jerome! Married to the lord and celibate! Jacob definitely wasn’t it. No way. He would probably eat Miller alive. Cannibalism was not okay. That just left John, but he was an unlovable nerd. Also, wasn’t he gay? She was like ninety percent sure he was. He definitely gave off those vibes that he preferred men, at least. With that jacket, the way he styled his hair, and how clean he was compared to his brothers.

Frodo’s head perked up when there was a knocking at her door. Eva gently pet his head before going to the door and opening it. Jacob stood in the doorway, his arms crossed. She looked up at him waiting for whatever he was going to say. 

“Dinner time, pup. Bring your pet.” He said before turning and walking down the hall. Eva quickly scooped Frodo up into her arms, and carried him along with her as she chased after the old veteran. She had to jog to keep up with him, since his legs were so much longer than her’s. Frodo yapped and licked at his little master’s face.

Jacob was always gone all the time. What was he doing? He always had some amount of blood on him too. And he really liked wolves.

“Are you a furry?” Eva asked.

“No.” Jacob answered dryly. Something in his voice told Eva he got that question a lot. Probably from John. John was probably a furry and projecting.

“Are you a werewolf?” She was going to figure out what was up with the wolf thing. 

“No.” He repeated through clenched teeth. That sounded an awful lot like something a werewolf would say. Her eyes narrowed. She didn’t believe him. 

“Where did you get Frodo from?” She asked, looking up at Jacob. He was quiet for a few seconds before answering.

“One of my Judges had a litter. Figured it’d be good for you to have one.” He said.

“Why are they so much bigger than regular wolves?” The exited the building she stayed in, walking along the path towards Joseph’s building.

“Cause they’re better than regular wolves, stronger.” That sounded pretty gay. Sounded like something John would say, that furry. 

“What are they for? Isn’t it illegal to raise wolves?”

“They protect.” Eva cocked her head to the side. That didn’t explain anything. Was that even a full sentence? Maybe he ran a wolf preserve. 

“Protect from what?” Jacob was quiet again, longer this time.

“From the monsters that lurk in day to day life.” He didn’t elaborate any further. That was it, he  _ was _ a werewolf! Eva’s brow pinched, even though she knew what he was that didn’t explain anything. What the hell did that mean? Jacob pushed the door to Joseph’s cabin open, letting Eva and Frodo enter first.

“I should take you two hunting when he gets bigger. Show you how to really get in his head. You ever kill anything before, kid?” He asked, looking down at her. He looked angry, but Eva assumed it was just his face at this point.

“Nancy made me the heartless killer of an innocent fish. Also there was that homeless guy I hit with the picture frame. He might have died. But mostly the fish.” Jacob snorted as the kid continued to speak.

“That was one of our chosen. They’re supposed to be our top guards. He died not long after you went to get cleaned up.” Eva gasped and looked at Frodo.

“I’m a murderer.” She whispered, a little too unfazed for a normal person’s comfort. Dare he say it, she sounded happy the man was dead. Jacob was just all the more sure that she would make a wonderful soldier one day. She was more upset about killing a goddamn fish than she was a man. Granted, the chosen had survived her attack, but with how weak he was, Jacob was the one who put him down. She didn’t need to know that. As long as it gives her a taste for blood, he would let her believe that it was her first human kill. 

“I can never go back to civilian life. There’s too much blood on my hands. Frodo! We have to go off the grid!” The pup’s ears perked up at his name. He barked excitedly. Jacob pushed the dining room door open and sat himself at the far side of the table. John, Joseph and Faith were already sitting there, a lovely spread of food on the oak table. Turkey, potatoes, carrots, green beans, dinner rolls and gravy. It was like an early thanksgiving. She set Frodo down. He ran right to a set of bowls she hadn’t noticed before. She took her place at the table in the one empty place, in between Joseph and John. The worst two.

“Good evening, Eva.” Joseph spoke when she sat down. Joseph was going to make them say grace, and his hands were clammy. She didn’t need to touch John to know that he probably used too much moisturizer. Either way they both grabbed her hands as the prayer was said. 

After he made them say grace, the adults began passing things around, taking what they wanted and not reaching over each other. Eva did her best to do the same, but she wasn’t used to it. Since it was normally just her and one other person. She couldn’t remember the last time she was at a table with more than three people.

“With every day that passes, The Collapse draws closer.” Joseph looked intensely at Eva. Um, ok? She lowered her food covered fork back to her plate, unsure of what to do.

“What  _ is _ The Collapse? You keep talking about it, but haven’t really said what would happen.” She sat back in her chair. Joseph didn’t even blink, maintaining his gaze on Eva.

“The Collapse is when God will salt the earth for seven years, cleansing it of evils.” Joseph said calmly. This all sounded super weird. 

“Like Noah’s arc, but fire.” Jacob said, dropping another large slab of meat onto his plate. Eva’s eyes grew wide. Didn’t, like, a lot of people die in that story? 

“Wha-”

“That is why we must be prepared for it. We’ve acquired bunkers, food and other necessary supplies to help us get through The Collapse, and cross through Eden’s Gate.” Joseph said before taking a bite of food. Eva’s head was reeling. The world was going to end? While she was alive on it? Bill Nye lied! 

“What about Frodo?” She asked. Joseph briefly looked to her canine companion.

“He will be treated as any other member of my flock.” Eva nodded slowly. Would Frodo have to be baptized? John did baptisms, didn’t he? Or did he do confessions? Was he a priest too? Jacob certainly wasn't. 

“There will be much starting over once we ascend. You’ll need to learn some essential skills.” Ugh, of course the end of the world still had school. 

“Like what?” She asked skeptically. 

“Mundane things, nothing too hard. Making soaps, candles and fabrics. I’d be happy to show you some of the basics.” The girl shrugged. That sounded better than what Nancy had taught her.

“Okay. Oh, actually Jacob’s good at hunting, right? That’s an important skill.” Joseph gave her a tight smile.

“It is. But perhaps you should work your way up to that. I could show you how to skin and tan the things Jacob catches.” As Joseph spoke, Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose and John ran his hands down his face. Eva smiled. More time with Jacob would be fun! Maybe he would stop leaving her here when he left all the time. She started eating her food again. It was really good. Jacob didn’t cook it. 

“Yeah, that sounds fun!” She said sipping on her drink. It burned a little going down, like grandpa’s beers. Except it tasted like pineapples and orange juice and not like piss. It was probably from concentrate. That stuff wasn’t very good and was more acidic than normal pineapple juice. Store brand too. The table got quiet after that, with everyone eating.

“I found a walkie-talkie in my room.” Eva said, popping a piece of dinner roll into her mouth. It was so good! She watched as everyone froze up. John dropped his fork, the metal clanking hard against the plate. Faith stared at her wide eyed. Jacob rubbed his eyes and groaned a little. Did they expect children to be silent at the table? Joseph got really serious, staring more intensely than before.

“Did you speak with anyone?” Eva pouted and shook her head. He must have been worried she was talking to strangers. Who did he think he was? Her dad?

“No. I did her grandpa’s deputies talking about some stuff. Sounded private though.” She took another sip, her head starting to feel funny. Everyone seemed to relax, especially Joseph.

“I see. What did they talk about?” He pressed and Eva hummed excitedly. She couldn’t wait to spill the tea. 

“Apparently Phoebe got knocked up.” She said, with more excitement then what was probably appropriate. John choked on his drink, coughing and spilling it all over. Yeah, it was surprising. Maybe he knew who the father might be? She’d have to ask him. Joseph shot him a disapproving glare. Spitting everywhere  _ was _ pretty rude.

“Eva, such vulgarities aren’t permitted at the table.” What vulgarities? Knocked or up? Joseph was trying to regain control of the situation and was failing. Eva would be controlled by no one. 

“Um, apparently Bea really likes Faith. Like  _ a lot _ . Which is weird, cause I thought she was into a girl named Rachel.” Faith couldn’t help the blush that crept up her cheeks. What Eva did not say was that she was eagerly awaiting the eventual fall out. 

“Oh, Pratt is missing and I guess Cooper was his boyfriend.” That was less interesting, but happened nonetheless. Maybe she would come to find out that Pratt was sleeping with Hudson on the side. He seemed like that kind of guy. 

“That so?” Jacob asked. Eva took another sip from her cup, humming in confirmation. At least someone here appreciated her gossip. 

“Can we go back to your statement about Phoebe?” John’s voice was weak. Did he like Phoebe too? Wasn’t he gay? Wait. What if he was bi? Oh drama!

“Yeah, apparently her baby daddy’s a real piece of shit. She said uhm… ‘Asshole’s probably off with some Peggie whore right now. Fucking bastard.’ and that he probably never gave a shit about her.” John ran his hand through his hair and stood. Eva got excited when he started getting all frantic. Yes, finally something interesting was happening around here. 

“I’m afraid I have to leave, right now. I’ll be sure to radio-”

“John.” Joseph leveled him with a serious look.

“We will discuss this after dinner.” Oh, is John getting in trouble? This was a great evening. Eva wasn’t going to stop there.

“Also, apparently Alice wants some mountain based lunatic to ‘pipe her down’. Which was a new one. I hadn’t heard that before. I’m not sure if she wants sex, or a plumber.” Eva finished her glass and set it down, she felt a little dizzy, but good. Joseph pinched the bridge of his nose and looked at Jacob, who only shrugged. Eva frowned. That wasn't the reaction she wanted. This was bullshit. 

“Eva, those vulgarities.” Joseph repeated, more firmly than before.

“Sorry.” Eva yawned.

“Joseph, who set up the kid’s room?” Jacob asked, standing up from the table.

“I believe their names were Harrison and Donner.” Joseph said. She only just noticed he was actually wearing a shirt for once. And one of those stupid “winter vests” that didn’t actually keep you warm. Jacob nodded and left the room to deal with the idiots who had allowed the child to have a way to communicate with the deputies. They were either so incompetent that they didn’t vet her items before putting them in her new room, or they were looking to betray them. Can’t have that. Something would have to be done about it. Joseph stood and offered Eva his hand, she cocked her head before taking it. He helped her stand, she was surprised by how little balance she had. How light headed she was. Once she was steady, he put his hand on her lower back.

He led her back to her room the long way, Frodo following at their heels. Walking her past the church and the water. It was a beautiful night, unusually peaceful since the reaping started. The moonlight reflected beautifully on the water and it wasn’t too cold out yet. The crickets chirped, the stars were out and the skies were clear. They couldn’t hear Bennett screaming in the distance. A lovely night for a stroll by the water. Montana was beautiful. The only thing that could have made it better was if Eva remembered her life as Melissa. Her old self would have loved all this. Of course, she was wonderful as she was. Eva was a bright girl. She would grow into her old self in no time. He just had to be patient. This was God’s will after all. He had to catch her a few times as they walked. She would stumble and trip over nothing. Someone must have given her the wrong drink. It was probably for the best, since it was more likely that John would have had a non alcoholic beverage.

They eventually made their way back to her room. He led her in and helped her get to her dresser. The girl kicked off her shoes and fumbled to get the drawers open. She pulled out an over sized TMNT shirt. Before she could start getting changed, Joseph brought their foreheads together, like he did with John. She didn’t like it and tried to move away. His forehead was as clammy as his hands. But his grip kept her there. He shushed her as she struggled. 

“Good night, Eva.” He said before gently kissing her head and slowly letting go of her. She couldn’t have pulled away fast enough. She watched as the man turned and left. Even with her mind as foggy as it was she still felt very uncomfortable with how touchy Joseph had been. He had done that with his brothers plenty of times in front of Eva. She had always thought it was weird but assumed it was a family thing. Though Jacob and John never did that to each other. But that could also just be John not wanting to touch Jacob, since he was usually pretty bloodied. What a priss. She heard the door click closed and she quickly got changed. Curling up on the bed she motioned for Frodo to join her. Excitedly the wolf jumped up onto the small bed and slept at her feet. He would keep her safe after all, Jacob said he was bred to protect.


	14. Only God may cast judgement

Joseph returned to his own residence after making sure Eva had gone to bed. Many things weighed heavy on his mind. His heralds, lately, had been causing him such stress. The Miller situation, and John's part in it, Faith’s troubles in the Henbane, and making sure Jacob properly reprimanded the correct Mitchell and Donner. On top of all that there were undoubtedly members of his flock that would want to seek an audience with him. His work was never done. So much to do. So little time to spend with his darling Eva. He was a tired man. All he wanted was to curl up in bed with Eva. But that sort of sloth would only further feed into the lust he carried for her.

The first thing he did was look for John, who was waiting by the gate for his guards to bring him back to his ranch. He was leaning against the church doors, arms crossed, brows pinched in annoyance, eyes fixed on his watch, and foot tapping. Occasionally he would look up from his watch angrily looking for his guards. Did he not tell John they would be discussing his relationship with Miller? Based on the face he made when he saw Joseph, it looked as if he knew and was trying to leave before his brother found him. How unfortunate for him. It was clear by John’s reaction at the table that there was something he had to confess before the project. It wasn’t a normal reaction to finding out one’s  _ enemy _ was expecting, but rather, one’s  _ lover _ . Oh, John, ever the sinner. Luckily Joseph was understanding and ever patient. 

“John.” Joseph spoke calmly, not quite showing his frustrations with his younger brother just yet. The youngest Seed turned to him and gave a placating smile, though a tad too late to hide his intentions. 

“Oh, Joseph. Come to see me off?” Joseph opened the doors to his church, quite disappointed in his brother. 

“I believe you have some things to confess to, John.” He beckoned for John to go inside. The younger man hesitated for just a fraction of a moment before obeying his brother. Joseph followed behind him, closing the church doors. Always the dutiful little brother, even when he’s done wrong. It took only a few quick strides to get to the front most pews. He looked to him before sitting and Joseph sat beside him. John no longer looked at him, another sure sign of his guilt. Why couldn’t he ever make things easy? Why was he so sinful? 

“John.” Joseph prompted. His brother took a shaky breath and looked at him with a wry smile. Hiding his guilt wouldn’t absolve him of his sins. Only confession and penance could. 

“Where do you want me to start?” He asked, voice tight.

“From the start would be best.” Joseph shifted to get more comfortable. John’s confessions always lasted the longest. It had been a while since his last. He’d begun to hope that John was finally coming around to see the light. That he finally conquered his impulses. 

“Well, I suppose it started when Phoebe, ah, first came to the county.” John was avoiding making eye contact. Joseph said nothing, offered no verbal judgment. He was here to listen and guide. 

“That was two years ago now. Before she actually joined the sheriff’s department.” John cleared his throat awkwardly. So he had known she was amongst the enemy? 

“My car had broken down, you may recall.”

“I do. I take it she was the helpful stranger you spoke of?” John nodded.

“She happened upon my guards and I. Figured out our motor trouble, fixed it, refused my offer for coffee and disappeared into the night.” Joseph motioned for him to continue when he paused. His face had moved from guilt for his sins to love for this woman and the memory of their meeting.

“The next time I saw her, it was, again, by chance. I was having some trouble with a few belligerent locals. Drunkards that stumbled their way out of that ratty bar. Too proud to listen to your word, Joseph.” John looked at him then, a desperate plea for love and forgiveness  _ Look, I was doing good, Joseph. I was doing what you’d asked of me. _

“Well, apparently she’d been in the bar with a friend of hers. She came out to see what the noise was. Her friend was one of the deputies. One of the blond ones. I can’t tell them apart.” John waved his hand dismissively. Joseph kept a frown from his face, they were identical yes, but John was walking a thin line. 

“While her friend dealt with the drunks, she seemed adamant on making sure I hadn’t been hurt by those heathens. She told me her name was Phoebe. I may have given her my phone number.” Joseph pinched the bridge of his nose. Lust was ever present in his brother. 

“Even after her friend pulled her away like I was diseased, she still texted me. After that we got to really talking.” John took a deep breath and let it out.

“She was so different from the women I’m used to coming in contact with, Joseph. Of course she was pretty, I have standards.” Joseph sighed, trying to not be disapproving and failing. It was only outer beauty his brother was concerned with, never looking for a kind soul. What was that Jacob said? You’re lucky you're kin. It seemed appropriate here. 

“But she was so… Genuine in her concern. Not just for me, for her friend too. Even after we became… Intimate, and she saw some of my worst sides, she was endlessly concerned with knowing I was alright.” John slumped back against the pew, getting lost in the memory of his lover. It was clear he thought highly of her. 

“Not unlike a battered housewife.” John glared at Joseph. No longer The Father and The Baptist, but rather brothers in the moment. It was rude, but Joseph knew John temper, his wrath. 

“Also, a few days after I gave her my phone number, she asked me if I knew anything about planes. She had to be the one, Joseph. I just knew it.” Joseph put his head in his hands and groaned a little. John was so desperate for affection he got attached to the first woman that didn’t want to use him for money, drugs, or sex. If she had been the one she would have respected herself enough to save herself for marriage. Not give herself out willy nilly, like a common whore, to the first man in the county that bathed regularly.

Though maybe that was more John’s fault than the woman’s. His brother was known to manipulate people to get what he wanted. If his brother had been stronger in his will than this would have been a joyous occasion that would be shared with his sister-in-law and the flock as a whole. But he was weak and tempted by his sins and she was the fool who listened to the snake. If she had nothing else to gain from her relationship with John, no ulterior motives, then she was a fool and a harlot. It was now on Joseph to save his family name. As well as John’s deeply unclean soul.

The child would always be a bastard, though none outside the family had to know. Joseph would ensure that their other children would be conceived in wedlock. Or not at all, and the temptress would be  _ dealt with _ . It would be as easy as plucking a weed from the garden. When God came to him to end the life of his own daughter, he did not hesitate then. Nor would he hesitate now. John had to learn there were consequences to his actions, even if it meant killing his unborn child and the woman carrying it.

“So you indulged your lust multiple times with her and now she’s carrying your child.” Joseph said, lifting his sunglasses to rub his eyes. Why would John sully himself and others in such a way? He couldn't even keep his sin to himself. He had to spread them like his legs all over town. Their baptist couldn’t be known as the county bicycle!

“I understand you’re upset, Joseph. I don’t know how else to tell you that this was something real. She’d never even been with a man before.” So she wasn’t a whore, she was just tempted by the devil. His brother defiled a woman, pure and untouched. Sullied her with his sin and now planted that sin within her. What would a child crafted from such deception be like? Joseph would have to watch over it and guide it’s moral compass, like he had failed to do for John. Like father like son, though hopefully God will grace them with a girl. As pure of soul as the mother used to be. He would see to it that she would not be as easily deceived as her mother. 

“I didn’t know she was pregnant.” John said softly, avoiding Joseph’s eyes again. That didn’t make it any better. In fact it only worsened the situation. John had cared so little for this woman that he thought nothing of her soul. Was she not worthy of finding a place within the Project? To be forgiven for her sins and to be allowed to walk in the new Eden with them? He just left her when the reaping began. Joseph would have allowed him to bring Miller into their protection just like Joseph did Eva.

“How old is this woman?” Joseph asked, echoing John’s question from so long ago. Something not lost on his brother. It was a low blow, he would fast for a day in penance. 

“What? Twenty-one.” John had the gaul to sound confused. Joseph tutted and shook his head. She was practically a child. He had taken advantage of a young woman, so inexperienced in the world and so utterly naive. Was she ready to be a mother?

“How many others?” Joseph asked. He had to know if he needed to find anyone else that might be able to sully their name with John’s bastard children. Though he could only account for those in Hope County before the collapse. If they were elsewhere, he could only pray that God would smite them. 

“ _ What _ ?” John asked, incredulous. Did Joseph really think so little of him? That he was incapable of staying true to his love? He was many things, and while he had slept around and broken more than his fair share of hearts, he’d never been in a relationship with any of those people he’d hurt. He’d been in so few relationships that it made it easy to say he wasn’t an adulterer. He was a sinner, yes, but not a cheating bastard. 

“How many other wo-”

“None! I’m telling you Joseph, this was  _ different _ . Cheating never crossed my mind! I’ve slept around yes, but I’ve never cheated on  _ anyone _ !” Joseph looked at him skeptically.

“You can’t cheat if you aren’t committed, Joseph!” This may make his opinion of John worse, but he needed to know he  _ loved  _ this Phoebe girl.

“John, as impressive as it is that you kept a marginally healthy and faithful relationship for two years, I told you-”

“I know, I know. I was planning on proposing to her. The reaping came too soon.” He said through clenched teeth. They had a plan that was dismantled when Whitehorse came to arrest Joseph with that fucking marshall. 

“The reaping came when God willed it,  _ John _ .” Joseph said, watching his brother deflate. There must have been a reason for God to keep John and  _ deputy  _ Miller apart. 

“I had a ring and everything.” John pinched the bridge of his nose. Joseph stood abruptly. He would make this right. His baby brother couldn’t help but be a sinner. He could save him and the woman that stayed in John’s heart for more than one night. He knew what he had to do. 

“Good. I’ll speak to Jacob about having him  _ acquire _ her. You need to set an example, John. We can’t have you having a child out of wedlock.” Joseph turned his back to his younger brother and left the church. This had already taken longer than he first thought. He couldn’t waste all night figuring out John’s messy love life. He had other things to do. While looking for Faith, he came upon Jacob loading two men into the back of his vehicle. They looked resigned to their fate. That was good. It seemed like they weren’t traitors. Just fools. Jacob looked at Joseph when he got closer.

“Found em’ doing the wash. They say they don’t know anything about the radio.” Joseph nodded and looked at the men.

“Perhaps they need to be reconditioned.” He suggested. Jacob shoved the second, now panicking man into the car and slammed the door shut.

“I was thinking the same thing.” Joseph put his forehead to Jacob’s.

“Safe travels, brother.” He said before moving away. He watched Jacob get into the car and drive off. Jacob did as he was told and got things done in a timely manner. Didn’t waste time by trying to weasel his way out of things. Not long after, John’s ride arrived. John’s guards weren’t the most punctual. Maybe they needed to be reminded of how bad sloth could be. 

Now where was Faith? Had she slipped past him already like John had tried to do? If so, she was more successful than his younger brother had been. Of course, she wasn’t weighed down by her sins. What a person John could be if he stopped giving into his impulses and sins. Faith had been talking about how stressful having so many deputies concentrated in her region was during dinner. Eva had arrived before he could ask her any further questions. She’d likely gone back to her region to focus on a stronger strain of Bliss. Faith had always tried to resolve her own problems before bringing them to him. How self sufficient unlike ...Others. 

The next few hours were spent listening to the concerns and confessions of his flock. Giving them advice, and telling them how to best repent. After all, the project would be nothing without his faithful. He needed to make sure they felt loved and cared for, no matter what. Even if his mind would wander to less than holy things every now and again. It had been so long, yet he still couldn’t stop thinking about Eva. The drunken flush on her face, the way she pressed against her when she got unsteady. The feel of her skin under his lips. Lord help him, he was as  _ weak  _ as John.

Joseph found himself quietly walking back to the building that housed his love. He quietly opened the door, walked down the dark, empty hall and paused in front of her door. Oh, how he had fallen, just like the first time he and Melissa had met. He always fell hard. It was just how God had made him. He gingerly opened the door, not wanting to wake her. She was still sound asleep. She looked enchanting. He pushed the door closed behind him as he entered the room. Frodo, her new pet woke with his entry, but neither yapped nor barked. The puppy merely readjusted himself and went back to sleep. Her room was a little cluttered with her things. He’d have to help her let go of her possessions. After all, what did she need electronics and plush dolls for? They’d be useless soon. Once the collapse came, she wouldn’t need anything, or anyone but him. He’d take such good care of her and their daughter.

Eva’s hair was soft under his touch, as he ran his fingers through her undone hair. She had forgotten to braid it in her exhausted state. Her hair fanned out beneath her sleeping form, framing her face beautifully. He wanted to capture this image of her, everything about her looked perfect. Like the princess from Sleeping Beauty. Her pink lips were parted as she slept, inviting the princes and kings that came to her to try breaking the spell she was under. Her chest rose and fell evenly with her silent breaths. He cupped her cheek and ran a thumb over her soft, silky skin. Still hot and stained red from the alcohol she had unknowingly drank. When she didn’t stir, he closed his eyes and placed a kiss to her lips. It had started out chaste, he swore it did. He pulled back quickly in case she woke. But she remained asleep, still as peaceful as when he entered the room. Something made him kiss her again, this time it wasn't as innocent. He lusted for her. The devil guided his hands down her sides. He could feel the warmth of her skin through the night shirt she wore. He memorized the slight curves of her body that would soon develop into the curves of a woman. One that would give life to their children. He reached the hem of her shirt and unthinking his finger slipped under the fabric. His fingers grazed her flesh, unseen by his eyes. Truly unknown to him. He could feel the fire burning inside him grow hotter at the touch.

“ _ Stop. _ ” The Voice cut through the haze of lust like a hot knife through skin.

Joseph stopped immediately, pushing himself back as though he’d been burned. His chest heaved with the effort to breath. He couldn’t believe what he’d almost done. To give into his own sin was bad enough, but he had come so close to polluting Eva’s innocence. He was just as bad as John. Joseph looked down at the sleeping girl in front of him. She looked so at peace. What right did he have to even think of touching her before they could be wed? Just earlier he had made John look at his sins as though he were a dog that did something wrong. He was a hypocrite. Though he had known to stop. He had the sense to stop. The will power, all of which his brother lacked. 

Joseph pulled the blankets back over her. Protecting her not only the cool night air, but from his own perverse thoughts. He would pray for forgiveness for his transgression. He  _ had _ to control himself better. He  _ would  _ control himself better. For her. This was  _ unacceptable _ , especially for The Father of all people. Had he not just told John to lead by example? Yet here he was, in his beloved’s room, sweating, hard as a rock and tempted by his sin. Tempted to  _ defile  _ her in her sleep. Before their union could be blessed by God, no less! Their first child would not be a bastard, he would see to that. Their daughter would be born to a set of loving,  _ married _ parents.

He had allowed the devil to take a hold of him. He had to be strong, to not be led astray by it’s will. He said a silent prayer for God to help him hold fast to his ideals. To help him control his unholy urges until they were no longer impure. He would not be like John. He and Eva would be united under God’s benevolent grace. He had to prove to not just himself that he was worthy of being her’s again, but to God. What had he done to earn her heart? Joseph had come so close to giving into his own depravity. She deserved better than that. He’d have to show her, no,  _ remind her _ , what a good husband he’d be. He’d yet to prove how loving and devoted he’d be to his beloved, Eva.

Jacob spent more time with her than he had and she trusted his older brother more than him. She saw him as a protector. This in and of itself wasn't a bad thing, it was his brother’s role for the Project, and Joseph truly did not feel jealous. After all, Joseph wasn’t even sure Jacob was interested in women. If he did, he certainly wasn’t successful at finding a wife. It was actually nice the two got along. His brother didn’t socialize very well with others. He’d stopped quite a few of his fights in the past, more than one of which was with John. Jacob liked children, he always had. He’d practically raised Joseph and John on his own for the longest time. As heartwarming as it was to see more of the old Jacob coming back to them, it was equally frustrating. He seemed determined to occupy Eva’s time as much as possible. Jacob disapproved of his plans to wed Eva and have her become the other to the flock. He would rather her train to be a soldier, his successor. Jacob treated Eva like his own daughter and not his future sister-in-law. If he wanted a successor he would have to wait until he had a niece or nephew. Especially since it wasn’t likely that Jacob would ever have children of his own. After the collapse it wouldn't be that long. 

Thankfully, John’s mistake would offer a chance to have Jacob out of the picture long enough for him to win her over. After all, they needed someone trustworthy to collect John’s  _ friend _ without damaging what she’s carrying. She’d need bridesmaids as well, witnesses were important for a proper ceremony. John would have to plan his own wedding, a time consuming and stressful process if ever there was one. Both his brothers would be much too busy to interfere with his time with Eva.


	15. Jacob the errand boy

Morning came too quick for Jacob. Not that he ever really slept well through the night. The staticy sound of Joseph's voice over the radio rose with the sun, waking the soldier up. The stark contrast between the radio and the quiet early Montana morning. On autopilot his hand darted over to his radio, in the same place he always left it, and answered it. 

“Jacob, I have a mission for you.” Joseph said over the frequency. No ‘good morning’. No sorry for waking you up. Nothing at all. 

“Don’t you always?” It was supposed to be a joke, but it came off more angry than anything. It wasn’t inaccurate. 

“I’m sorry for calling on you so early in the morning. But I only just got word that John’s intended has made her way into your region.” Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose. At least he got a half assed apology. That was more than what he usually got from John.

“John’s getting married now?” Because shotgun weddings always turned out  _ so  _ well.  _ John’s  _ shotgun wedding would go so well. This was a line he hadn’t expected Joseph to cross. Though so was pedophilia. John would do anything to make Joseph happy, even marry his girlfriend right away because Joseph said so. It wouldn’t be a problem until this all fell apart. John being left at the altar in tears. John  _ had  _ to have known that would be how this would end. But until his baby brother complained about it, which John always did when he didn’t want to do something, Jacob would keep his mouth shut. No point in causing any more drama than there already was. He could only imagine the kind of person John had involved himself with. He knew she was a woman, her name was Miller and she was a deputy. Oh, and that she was pregnant with his niece or nephew. That’s all he wanted to know about her. 

“Yes. Please bring the bride to the ranch. In one piece and without any Bliss. We haven’t tested the effects it has on a fetus.” Jacob cringed at the word fetus. John was having a kid. He was sure his little brother would be better than their father was to them, but that was one low fucking bar. It also meant he couldn’t just send some chosen to go get her. They weren’t up for the task of tracking any deputy and wrangling them without significant injury. He had to  _ personally  _ go and get her. That left a lot to be desired. Joseph saw what happened to Eva, what made him think the deputy would go any differently. The woman was a deputy, she wasn’t going to be easy to capture. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Jacob pushed himself off his bed and got to his feet. His body didn’t want to move and was tight. Just another day in religious bliss, huh? 

“Hunt safely, brother.” That was the end of the radio call. He stood in his room for a moment, just taking in everything. His life now revolved fetching brides for his brothers. What a disgusting existence. Jacob ordered two of his chosen to locate Miller. It would be a waste of his time if he tracked her himself. He made it expressly clear that she was to be tracked.  _ Not _ hunted. Only time would tell if they would have to be reconditioned. Getting ready for a hunt consisted of taking a five minute shower, getting dressed, grabbing his shit and leaving the vet center. The same as any other day. 

The moment he left his room, he was informed that Miller and Cooper were near the whitetail ranger station. They had actually managed to take it back. If nothing else, John’s baby mama was competent enough to not get herself killed in a gunfight. Wait. Why was she  _ in _ a gunfight? If they killed all his men undetected, he’d be both impressed, and pissed off. He dropped his bag on the passenger seat of his car.

The sound of gravel was loud in the quiet of the early morning as Jacob made his way to her last known location. His radio was on, getting updates from his men to her most recent locations. Maybe god did exist, when his men reported that she had gotten separated from Cooper. Apparently that was a rare event that he needed to take advantage of if he wanted to try to keep her unharmed. No gunfight would be necessary. He could easily trap one person unharmed. He found her not far from the youth camp. She was playing with fire being alone in his region while pregnant. Did she even realize John was looking for her? Or did she think he abandoned her? Looking at her where she was heading it seemed like she was just… Wandering. Alone. During all this. Unsurprisingly, the girl John knocked up wasn’t the brightest. He set up a few simple net traps. Nothing that would harm the baby, just immobilize her. With everything done he set himself up in a tree nearby. With the lack of attention she was giving her surroundings, he would be perfectly hidden. Now he just had to wait. 

About an hour and a half later, he heard the rustling of branches and leaves, someone was coming towards his traps. The young woman was wearing the standard issue deputy uniform. With his binoculars, he could see  _ Miller _ clearly written on the front of her jacket. The girl looked to be in her early twenties, and was intensely humming something unfamiliar to him. It was chipper, probably from some stupid musical. That's what young people were into now right? No, probably not. That was what  _ John's  _ woman was into. She walked with a skip in her step, and a vacancy in her eyes. Someone was home, but the lights were off. Where did John even find her? Jacob didn’t really think about the women that John had slept with before, maybe they were all this dumb. Were most women like this? None of the Faiths were, and Hudson wasn’t. Maybe they were the exception not the rule. If so there would have be a lot more culling to get this rampant stupidity under control. 

“-- He would watch without winking- and he knows what you were thinking- and it's certain- that he didn't approve- Of hilarity and riot- So the folk were very quiet- When Skimble was about and on the move!” The girl stopped humming and began singing. It was even worse than he first feared. She had no brain in her head. How did she become a deputy?  _ Why  _ did she become a deputy? Oh no, This girl was going to be his sister in law, and here he thought John’s ranch couldn’t get any worse. She wasn’t the least bit concerned about her surroundings. Was she eager to die? Did she just not want to deal with John? Suicide by cultist? Jacob watched as the girl froze up and let out the most shrill squeal he’d ever heard. Had she seen his traps? Was all this an act to get him to let his guard down? It didn’t sound like fear or concern. He knew those cries intimately and those weren’t it. 

“Baby bunny!” She cooed loudly. That should have scared the rabbit off by itself. She ran up towards one of his traps. Again, another action that should have sent the rabbit running. She stopped just short of setting it off.

“Come here little baby bunny.” She spoke to the rabbit like it was a human baby, holding her hand out to it like it was a domestic animal. The fucking thing actually went right into her waiting arms. What the fuck? She stood with the rabbit in her arms, petting it.

“I’m gonna name you Rum Tum Tugger and-” Her cooing was cut off by a shriek. That was more like it. Shock and fear. This made sense. She set off his trap. Jacob dropped down from his perch and landed with a deep thud. He made his way over to his victim. He watched her struggle against the ropes. She froze up when she saw him, not unlike the rabbit she was holding so close. She knew who he was. Good. 

“ _ Fuck _ .” Miller watched in horror as Jacob cut her down and carried her to his car.

“Am I going to die?” She asked, tears pricking at her eyes. She did have some brains after all. 

“Maybe. We’ll see.” Phoebe let out a broken sob as she was spirited away by the cannibalistic mountain man. This was easier than when he kidnapped the child. Oh, how weak people nowadays are. The soldier's mood improved. This went off without a hitch. No guns, no bliss, no stabbing. Just a plan going smoothly.

“Calm down, it’s just a secondary location.” He taunted, he was having a good day. The young woman cried louder and let out a terrified whine. He was thankful she couldn’t see the sadistic smile that graced his face. He had an image to keep up, after all. He would have to ask Eva about this whole secondary location thing later. Maybe while they were training Frodo. What a dumb name for a wolf. If she was going to name it after a Lord of the Rings character it should have been, Aragorn, or Sauron, not a hobbit name. Even Boromir would have been better. 

The drive to the ranch was a quiet one. Dare he say it, nice. She didn’t blubber and beg for her life like most did. It was refreshing. She just quietly told the baby rabbit, that she refused to let go of, that everything would be okay. Maybe he should start keeping rabbits for his victims to hold if it shut them up.  When he finally stopped the car, Miller looked up from her rabbit and glared at Jacob. She tried to look intimidating, she really did. Eva was scarier than this woman. How was she in law enforcement? 

“No.” Her voice was hard, something close to a thought flickering behind her eyes. Jacob scoffed. Like she had a choice. 

“You don’t have a choice.” Jacob wrestled Miller out of the car and threw her over his shoulder. She kicked and hit at him. Where was this when he dragged her to the car? She clawed at the back of his neck with her nails, tearing the skin with deep cuts. At least she had some fight in her, and she knew to go for vital spots, unlike Eva. Not like the last Miller he dealt with. He died like a bitch. Good riddance.  _ The weak must be culled _ .

“Fuck you! No! Put me down!” The deputy hissed like an animal, clawing further at the wounds she’d inflicted on him. This was getting old. Why was he always the one that got hurt? Jacob kicked the door to John’s ranch open loudly. John and Joseph both startled at the sound. What were they just waiting around for him to get back? Didn’t they have anything more important to do? Anything at all? Or did he do all the work? Jacob dropped Phoebe on the couch, in a similar way to how he dropped Eva. She grunted with the impact.

“Be more careful. She’s carrying delicate cargo, Jacob.” Miller paled, her head spinning to look at Joseph. She didn’t know they knew then. Eva really didn’t contact them, did she?

“No I’m not.” She blurted out immediately. It reeked of guilt. She sat there silent and still for a moment, taking in her surroundings this time. The rabbit she had been holding onto lept away, disappearing into the house. She tried to escape by scrambling quickly over the back of the sofa, Jacob grabbed her around the waist when she tried to vault off. Nope, none of that. He threw her back down to the sofa. John cleared his throat, bringing the room’s attention to himself. He smiled at Miller and put his hands up as he approached her. John would  _ never  _ hurt her. Phoebe was one of the kindest, most forgiving people he’d ever met, she couldn't be too upset.

“Good afternoon, sweetheart.” Phoebe whipped a throw pillow at John. He jumped out of the way and gave her a tight smile. Okay, maybe she was a  _ little  _ upset. Not a problem, she ran on emotion. She had just met Jacob, he should have expected this. He’d just have to talk her down. He’d done it before when she was sad and confided in him. This was just like that but with anger instead. He could soothe her wrath like she did his. 

“Now, I know you’re angry. But violence isn’t the answer here. Phoebe-”

“Fuck you!” She spat. John inhaled sharply through his nose and held it for a moment before letting a breath out. He flexed his hands, balling them into fists and relaxing them. Calm, be calm. She needed him to have a level head. 

“Phoebe, honey, if you would let me explain-”

“Get fucked, you Peggie piece of shit!” Tears started to slip down her face. Ok, he could deal with her sadness. He’d done this before. Phoebe curled up, facing away from them. This was a minor set back. She didn’t hate him. She didn’t hate him, she told him she loved him. This was nothing. There was no way she could hate him. They would go back to the way they were before. No, they would be even better than before. They would be married! Jacob would be there as his best man and Joseph would-

“You have three days to plan the wedding, or we’ll have to kill her.” John looked at Joseph, mouth agape. That wasn’t enough time! Wasn’t enough time to really smooth everything over with Phoebe, let alone that  _ and _ plan a wedding. Phoebe whimpered loudly into the couch. This wasn’t how John wanted to broach the subject. He had  _ planned _ for a romantic evening after she had calmed down. To propose to her after a ride in his plane, and a nice dinner under the stars at his Yes sign. It would have been perfect and worthy of her. Now that was all in flames. 

“Jacob, would you be so kind as to collect the bridal party? Bea Rook should be easily obtained. Feel free to use as much Bliss as you need.” With that, Joseph left. Jacob patched the back of his neck before following his younger brother, leaving John and Phoebe alone. The only sound was the door closing leaving the two in a tense silence. 

John sat on the couch by Phoebe’s legs and put his hand on her thigh. They sat there as he watched her cry into the cushions. He could fix this. Though that didn’t stop his heart from being heavy in his chest. In some way he was the cause of this. He gingerly began rubbing her thigh, only for her to kick at him. She missed so badly that she was definitely not aiming for him. That was a good sign. When her leg came back down, he put his hand on her knee. She didn’t speak or acknowledge him any further. 

“I understand you’re angry, Phoebe. I did intend to tell you about my place in the project and-” Phoebe quickly sat up and weakly swung at him. His grip on her knee tightened, something manic flashing in his eyes. Something dangerous. If she noticed, she didn’t say anything about it. She was caught up in a flurry of emotion. 

“I don’t care that you’re in a  _ cult _ ! I’m upset that you  _ lied  _ by omission!” She rubbed at her eyes, trying to stop her tears as she yelled. But they kept coming, hot against her face. It was becoming an ugly sort of cry. The kind where your face gets hot, your eyes are puffy after, and you can't get any words out. Phoebe’s shoulder sagged and she slumped against the couch, holding onto herself. She wasn’t going to cry like that in front of  _ him. _

Panic continued to rise in John as she went quiet again. He couldn’t lose her. No, no,  _ no _ ! He was so close to having everything he’d ever wanted! She was the final piece that he needed to complete him. He had his brothers back. He had someone who actually gave a shit about him and he was going to be a father! She couldn’t leave now. She had to see how much he loved her. She had to know. If she didn’t he would show her. He didn’t want to have to send Phoebe to Faith. He wouldn’t send her to Jacob. He’d rather she become an angel. He didn’t want to hurt her. But he wouldn’t let her go. Even if he had to-

“Fuck... I love you but I’m really fucked up about this, John! How the fuck am I supposed to trust you if you kept this sort of shit from me?” She still loved him. John let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Everything was fine. He didn’t need to panic, he just had to calm her down. She loved him as much as he loved her. Nothing would come between them.  _ Ever _ .

“I swear there isn’t anything else.” John moved closer to Phoebe, putting his hands on her shoulders. She looked like a kicked puppy as she leaned against him. John kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her shoulders. 

“When did you find out you were expecting?” He wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, tilting Miller’s head up to make her look at him. She looked up at him with those eyes that he missed so much. She always wore her heart on her sleeve and her eyes were always full of such genuine emotion. He wanted them to look up at him with love and adoration again. 

“A few days ago. I was feeling really off, so I went to see if one of the doctors at the clinic. They ran a few tests and told me what was wrong.” John ran a hand up and down her back. She was beginning to relax.

“How did  _ you _ find out?” She asked, brows furrowing. John sighed. He had wanted to pretend nothing outside was happening. He didn’t want to tell her about the kid Joseph kidnapped so he could groom her and how he did nothing.

“Joseph acquired a child for... Less than savory purposes. Apparently there was a radio in the room she was given to occupy. She overheard quite a bit of things.” John said, and Phoebe’s eyes went wide. She tried to push away from him.

“W- Wait! That’s Eva! Where is she? John, she’s in so much trouble!” John held Phoebe still, his grip on her tightening as he shushed her. She looked up at him with pleading eyes, tears threatening to fall again. He would do anything to make her happy again. 

“I know. Jacob and I are, ah, trying to figure out what to do.” Phoebe didn’t look convinced, but rested her head against him and buried her face in his chest. This was all too much. She took a deep breath. John still smelled the same as he did before, that cologne he always wore. She didn’t know why she expected it to be different, for him to smell like bliss. He was still the same man. 

“Actually, Jacob is pretty attached to the kid. He gave her a judge puppy. He’s surprisingly paternal under that gruff exterior.” John took her momentary calm to slip the engagement ring he’d gotten her on her finger. The cool metal got her attention. She stared at the ring for a few seconds before squealing with excitement. There it was. Her eyes were full of love and directed at  _ him _ . No one else.

“I had wanted to do this  _ correctly _ but Joseph had other ideas it seems.” Phoebe clung tightly to him, face buried into his chest again. So excited she could barely contain herself. 

“I love you.” She murmured, tearing up again. Good.  _ Good. _ John stroked her hair and rocked Phoebe back and forth. This was all he ever wanted. They would reach New Eden together. 

“I love you too.”

“Why don’t we get you cleaned up?” John lifted Phoebe off the couch and started to carry her upstairs. They were together and nothing would separate them. He’d kill anyone who tried.


	16. Ooops they're all idiots

Jacob’s men tracked Beatrice Rook to just a spot right outside of the Whitetails, right across the Henbane River in Faith’s territory. Bliss fields were being burned and soldiers and angels alive being beaten to death with shovels. It would have been more gruesome if the shovels had been left in the bodies. But the woman was reusing them. John had some competition for most “wrathful”, psychotic was more like it. Each deputy had their own specialties, it was all in the info they gathered before the reaping. There were two deputy Rooks, identical twins, both dangerous. They were a trapping and hunting team. Taking his men down like deer. Alice was the trapper, weaponizing the environment itself. Bea was the hunter, killing his soldiers like they were half dead, lost in the desert, weak. They were very different from Deputy Miller. Weren’t there any standards? Or did they hire Miller to even out the odds, make it a little easier for the criminals? Why were the Rook sisters trained so well?

He pulled over to the side of the road at her last known location, just outside a dense line of trees. Unlike Miller, it seemed this Rook knew she was being hunted and was aware of the advantages of hiding among the trees. Quietly, silently, not singing about some spanks guy on a train of degeneracy. Is that why John liked her? Was she a degenerate like him? Ugh. He didn’t want to think about that. John was an irredeemable pervert, but he was still his baby brother. He could almost picture his chubby little face, showing him a frog he found by the river. He’d been, what, four?

Jacob got out of the car and started loading Bliss bullets into his guns. Joseph had said this one would be an easy capture, but he said that about Eva too. Not only that, this one was an adult, both physically  _ and  _ mentally. She would strike to kill, and probably could. At first he found her use of shovels funny, a dozen dead later, not so much. He would have to be careful. This would actually be a challenge. 

Placing his trust sniper on his back, he made his way into the trees. He kept quiet and low to the ground, keeping his eye out for any movement. Deeper into the forest he saw a figure run past him going even further into the trees. Cautiously he followed the figure to a clearing. He stopped a few feet from clearing, refusing to enter the open area. Rook must have thought he was dumb. He wasn’t John, he wasn’t stupid. 

A shovel flew at his head from his left. Maybe he was stupid. Jacob whipped around, narrowly dodging the attack. His attacker was still hidden. Well played. As he moved to try and secure a safer location another shovel shot out towards him, embedding itself deep into the bark behind him. She was nearby, and she could see him. He got a vague idea of her direction by the trajectory of the shovels. This was his life. Hiding from a shovel wielding maniac. Getting his back against a tree for cover he listened to his surroundings. There was only the rustling of leaves in the wind. Not much to go on. Whoever this girl was she knew how to stay hidden. He clicked his tongue against his teeth. If this kept up he would miss dinner. He needed to end this soon. He did have an idea, but it was so stupid. It was so,  _ so _ stupid. But so was Miller and maybe the rest of them were too. 

“Little Johnny’s gettin’ hitched to your friend.” He spoke loudly to his surroundings, he felt like a jackass. No way this would work. He closed his eyes and knocked the back of his head against the bark of the tree. This was dumb.

“Faith is gonna need a date for the wedding.” There was a rustling in the tree next to the one he’d taken cover behind. It  _ fucking worked _ . The world was fucking with him. He immediately took his shot. Bam! Bea fell from the canopy and hit the ground hard, just like Eva and Miller. She groaned, trying to stand, but he’d gotten her in the thigh. It was like watching a baby deer try to walk. That was clear from the deep red patch forming over her blue jeans. Making it difficult to move, on top of the Bliss that now coursed through her veins. She kept stumbling, it was impressive she was still up. Still, she tried to reach for one of her shovels, she still had a lot of fight in her. They were kept in a golf bag that was slung over her shoulder. Most of them had a deep red stain on them.

He watched as she tried to stay upright, clearly struggling. She tired moving to his location, one step, two, before finally collapsing under the weight of her own weapons. Jacob leisurely walked over, pulling the bag off of her and hoisting her over his shoulder. Apparently she wasn’t unconscious, she groaned in pain. He gleaned at her to see her bliss glazed eyes glaring at him. She was trying. He felt a weak attempt at a strike hit him in his face. Miller had done more damage, though to be fair she wasn’t drugged. Rook fought with the little strength she had left. He didn’t try to restrain her as he threw her in the back seat before rounding the truck to get in the driver’s seat. Maybe she’d be quiet for the ride back.

He’d already started the drive back when Bea mustered up the strength to throw herself at the front passenger seat. Jacob swerved and barely missed an oncoming blue sinner car before getting back into his lane. She wasn’t trying to hurt him, she didn’t have the strength for that. She weakly flailed her arms and legs as she climbed into the front, almost kicking him in the head as she went over the console. So much for easy. She groaned as she tried to sit upright and panted like she’d run a marathon as she moved to get comfortable. Considering the Bliss usually had people out cold, this was actually pretty impressive. She was quiet for a while, but he could feel her staring at him.

“Hey, okay, we got a bet going, me and Thomson.” Her words were badly slurred, like she was drunk. Jacob didn’t answer her, eyes fixed on the road. She wouldn’t ruin this. If he ignored her she would stop talking, right?

“Your face is like, all fucked up, but Alice is d.t.f. So. Are you a virgin or-” Jacob slammed on the breaks and Rook went flying at the windshield. Her head hit the glass with a loud crack. She hadn’t put a seat belt on, she couldn’t blame him for that. She was an  _ officer _ , she should have known better. She grunted, the glass had cracked where her head hit it, and fell back against the seat. Jacob glared at her. She held her bleeding forehead and hissed in pain. 

“Ugh. What the fuck, dude. It was just a question...” She groaned.

“Why the hell do you think it’s any of your business?” Jacob spoke through clenched teeth. Was he annoyed, or had she hit a sore spot? Either way, it opened him up for a full force of Bea’s taunting. Blissed or not, Bea was Bea and she saw an easy target for a good time. She was going to get information out of him now. Granted, the Bliss seemed to keep her from thinking before she opened her mouth. Either way, this was going to be fun.

“Okay, but your reaction doesn’t scream ‘I’ve fucked before’.” Bea tried and failed to keep herself from laughing. He just was so mad. He was like, really,  _ really _ mad. The tips of his giant ass, elephant ears were getting red. He was such a virgin. 

“It’s none of your-”

“ _ That _ is exactly what a virgin would say.” Bea cut him off, pointing at him with a cheeky smile. Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose and the car started moving again. He was no fun. Bea pouted and looked at her forehead wound when it was clear she wasn’t getting an answer. There wasn’t any glass in the bloody mess, which was good. But to be fair, her vision was blurred around the edges and everything was sparkly. Where ever he was taking her better have a medic or there would be hell to pay.

“Okay, so no comment on bet numero uno. Question dos. Did you know Feebs is the kid of the guy you ate? Thomson was digging though some classified shit and he found  _ those  _ records.” Bea lightly tapped her hands on her knees, watching him.

“Of course she is.” Jacob groaned, running a hand down his face. As bad as she felt for Feebs, this was hilarious. Her baby daddy’s brother was the gross desert cannibal. What a small world. He wasn’t just a cannibal he was a cannibal cultist. You don’t see many of those everyday. What a wedding it was going to be. She was going to  _ fuck  _ Faith on the podium. Oh, wait,  _ Cooper  _ was going to hate this! His adoptive little sister was marrying the worst of the cultists. Even better. That baby was totally going to be the Antichrist. Nothing could change her mind on that. 

“Oooo, so you didn’t know John was fucking your dead friend’s kid.” Bea sounded scandalized, but wore the biggest smile.

“No. I didn’t.” He didn’t appreciate the information at all and frankly, it was kinda rude. Didn’t he want to know about his future sister-in-law? Like how her mom got a horrible degenerative disease months after being told her father would never be coming home? He must have known his dead friend that he ate had a kid. You don’t just eat a random stranger in the desert. Jacob and Mr. Miller  _ must  _ have known each other pretty well. Besides walking, killing, and sex, talking was the main thing you did in deserts. What else would soldiers do other than-

“Did you have sex with her dad?” Jacob grimaced and huffed out his nose.

“Is that a yes or…?” In lue of an answer, Jacob’s hand shot off the wheel, punching Bea in the cheek. She bit her tongue and the inside of her cheek cut against her teeth. That shit hurt like a bitch, even through the haze of Bliss. Beatrice spat a mouthful of blood onto the dashboard. That was uncalled for. But she was now certain they did fuck. 

“A no, then.” She lied. She didn’t want to get hit again. She was mercifully quiet after that for a while, focused on getting her mouth to stop bleeding. Then she was talking again.

“My sister’s got  _ real  _ weird taste.” Bea watched his face for a reaction. Unsurprisingly, she got none. What a square. Alice was the second most attractive Deputy in hope county! He should feel honored.

“She’s also super picky.” Jacob huffed uninterested in what she was saying. 

“Why are you still talking?” 

“My sister wants to fuck you and I’m trying to gage your interest.” His face remained as stoic as ever. How annoying. Most people would be thrilled to hear a pretty girl wanted to roll in the sheets with them. Especially if they were as fucked looking as Jacob Seed.

“If she’s anything like you, then I’d rather choke to death.” Bea’s smile didn’t falter in the least, if anything it grew wider.

“Lucky you! She’s nothing like me! She’s  _ polite _ .” She used air quotes when saying polite. Bea, suddenly much more tired, leaned back and relaxed against the seat.

“I don’t know why you’re still talking.” She stuck her bloodied tongue out at Jacob. He was so boring, what did Alice find attractive about this Bigfoot looking motherfucker? He was  _ hideous _ , like, make you vomit when he hits on you kinda ugly. Also, he was old as fuck. Feebs was pushing it with nailing the baby Seed, but Alice wanted to rob the grave! He was also a man, ew, so he loses points by default. Also, he reeked of Irish spring soap. That shit cuts through any amount of stink, and doesn’t smell the best. So not looking good for his hygiene.

Only Italian greyhounds with crippling anxiety like Irish spring soap. Also, also, he should take cues from the bastard baby and smother those burns in moisturizer. It looked like his face was going to peel off, like a snake shedding its skin. This man was falling apart at the seams. Alice would be better off chasing Eli’s dick.

At least that fucker knew how to be a person and talk with people. He’d been married before, he knew how to treat a woman, and a Wheaty. Yeah, his wife left him. But losing a kid fucked people up and changed them. He was messed up for a while, sure, but he got his shit together in time to fight the cult. Not everyone could do that. He’d be a great partner! Natural leadership skills, a good moral compass, he was a better version of all the Seeds combined. Plus, Alice was dying to live off the grid, and Eli could totally live that lifestyle.

Eli also didn’t have the weird thing about wolves. Or power. Or cannibalism. Or the whole, “Is he a furry” thing. If he  _ was _ he hid it better than anyone else. What Eli did have was wild facial hair and the ability to kill shit. Bea found facial and body hair gross, but she could guess that Alice thought the opposite. No judgement. One look at Eli’s arms and you could tell that fucker was hairy as fuck. 

The drive back to the ranch felt so much longer with Bea in the car then when he’d kidnapped Eva and Phoebe combined. She had comments for everything and always voiced them. She was afraid, she was too drugged for that. Jacob also had the feeling that even if she wasn’t, she still wouldn't be afraid. Rook was too used to being the apex predator. He didn’t believe in God, but was he thanking that holy shitstain in the sky when they pulled up to the ranch. Bea opened her door when they finally stopped. She stumbled out of the car and found her legs. Jacob begrudgingly climbed out and followed after her.

Bea pushed the door to the ranch open with her whole body, making it slam against the wall. Guess she had her strength back. At least in her legs, despite the bullet wound. John and Phoebe jumped at the loud crash of the door. They were sitting on the couch, looking at various wedding ideas. Phoebe wasn’t wearing her uniform anymore, instead she had on one of John’s stupidly expensive dress shirts. Her hair was wet and she had a towel hanging over her shoulders.

“What’s up fuckers?” Bea slurred, coming to stand behind the couch, leaning down between the two of them.

“Yo, which way’s the bathroom at? Also the kitchen? I gotta piss and I gotta munch. This bitch hasn’t eaten since before dawn” John opened his mouth, probably to tell her to fuck off, but Phoebe spoke first, very excited to see her friend.

“Bathroom’s up stairs and the kitchen is down the hall that way.”

“Cool beans, baby-face.” Bea staggered herself off in the direction of the bathroom, tripping as she climbed up the stairs. Jacob turned and began walking towards the door. He sure as hell wasn’t going to stay there. Not with John, and Miller, and  _ that Rook _ .

“Oh! Hey, wait! Do you want something to eat?” Phoebe asked, putting the paper she was holding down on the coffee table. Jacob grimaced and looked at John. He didn’t want to eat. He didn’t want to see Miller and his brother play house.

“You trust that one in the kitchen?” He asked John. Phoebe frowned.

“I can cook just fine. Bea is the one you need to worry about in the kitchen.” As Phoebe left for the kitchen, Bea came back. It was hard to miss since she fell down the stairs. She laid on the floor for a few seconds before bouncing back up and coming towards them. Her forehead was bandaged and her face had been washed free of blood. She was way too energetic for someone who just got shot. With drugs. And had a head injury.  _ And  _ was punched in the face. The fuck was she? She sat herself on the bear skin rug, petting it. It was so soft.

“Where’s my girl at?” Half distracted as she pet the pelt, she wasn’t looking at the brothers. Rook mumbled how soft the rug was. Something about naming it “Brody” and how it could be her new dad. The fuck was wrong with her?

“Faith is on her way, she had to meet with the Father. He had questions about what was happening in her region. Which, honestly, was probably a cover to ask her what sort of fabrics would look best on his intended child bride.” John said, going back to looking through wedding plans. Bea nodded and looked up at Jacob.

“You got Pratt, right?” She asked, leaning back on her hands. Jacob glared at her.

“Why?” He groaned. Oh shit, he forgot to feed him. Oh well, if he was dead he could feed him to his chosen. Maybe take Hudson from John and train her to be a soldier instead.

“Cooper has a huge boner for Pratt. You should bring him with you to find Coop. Just like, beat him up or shoot him. Make him scream and his boyfriend will come running.” Jacob and John stared at her suspiciously. How did this benefit her at all?

“Why would you tell us that?” John asked, putting his paper down. Bea blinked.

“ _ Because _ , I want to go on a date with Faith. What’s more romantic than a shitty wedding?” Phoebe walked back out of the kitchen with several plates, each with a sandwich and chips. Bea wolf whistled at her friend, or maybe it was at the food, and jumped up.

“Which one’s mine?” Phoebe rolled her eyes and gestured for her to take one of the plates. 

“They’re all the same. Just take one.” Bea took one of the plates that was balancing on Miller’s wrist. She sat herself at the table and began digging in like an animal. Faith would have to domesticate her. Imagine seeing this at John’s wedding. Wait, that would be great. Anything to embarrass John. That was his job as the oldest brother. Phoebe rounded the coffee table and offered one of the plates to Jacob. He hesitated before taking it with him as he left. 

“Did he just steal one of my plates?” John asked dryly.

Taking Bea’s advice, Jacob returned to the veteran’s center. He found Pratt out by the cages, vacantly watching the prisoners and judges, looking very hungry. He approached the deputy and gripped his throat so hard his blunt nails dug into his skin. Jacob took a bit of his sandwich. It was pretty good. Maybe he’d have to stop by with Eva sometime for lunch. Miller wasn’t  _ completely _ useless. He shoved Pratt to start walking. He led his prisoner back out towards the front and forced him to get into the car. It was going to be a long day. 

Pratt sat in the passenger seat quietly and just stared in front of him. Jacob didn’t say where they were going, or why. Just that he needed to go along. He didn’t find out until they were already driving. Jacob was casually eating that sandwich, some of the lettuce falling into his lap. He had tossed the plate out the window. It shattered behind them. The radio on Jacob’s hip crackled to life, and the voice on the other end gave Cooper’s location. The pit in his stomach dropped hard and broke out in a cold sweat. Had he done something wrong? Was Jacob doing this to punish him for being weak? No this wasn’t about him it was about Cooper. He knew exactly what was happening. Jacob was going to use him as  _ bait _ .

They stopped close to Cooper’s last known location, not far from the fang center. Jacob checked his sniper before getting out of the vehicle. Pratt hesitated before following, climbing out and following Jacob into the brush. If he were stronger maybe he would be able to fight back. Save Cooper from whatever the cult had planned for him. But he wasn’t strong and disobeying would only end badly. He was weak, and his weakness was about to possibly kill one of the people he cared most about. He tried to justify it to himself. That he could help Cooper escape from the inside. That somehow he was gathering information until the resistance came to get him. Pratt wasn’t moving fast enough for Jacob. He grabbed him by the throat and pulled him along, deeper into the forest. He didn’t struggle. 

When they were far enough out, Jacob kicked Pratt in the knee and slammed the butt of his rifle against his cheek. He grunted and groaned when he hit the ground. Maybe he was going to kill him. At least if he was dead he couldn't be used as bait. The larger man stood over him and  _ tsk- _ ed at him, shaking his head.

“You’re gonna have to do better than that, Peaches. You want to die out here?” Yes. Jacob stomped on Pratt’s hand, breaking two of his fingers. A scream was ripped from his lungs at the sudden pain, drowning out the sickening  _ snap _ of the bones being crushed. The soldier didn’t waste any time, not allowing Pratt to rest. He slammed his foot against his victim’s side, not hard enough to break anything, but enough to make him cry out in agony. 

A bullet fired out from in the trees, grazing Jacob’s cheek and drawing blood. So he was here. Good. Pratt only had ten fingers to break before he would have had to get creative. “ _ Art _ ” was more John’s thing. Leaving Pratt on the ground, bleeding and in pain, Jacob ducked behind a tree. They exchanged fire back and forth. Changing positions to get better cover and angles. Cooper was definitely the brains between him and Miller. Though not as well hidden as Rook was, but still at least a bit of a challenge. It didn’t help that his gun was bright red and giving away his position, but picking Pratt up and using him as a meat shield helped that some. He and Cooper exchanged sniper fire until Jacob landed a hit on Cooper’s thigh. If it wasn’t a bliss bullet the hunt would probably have gone on longer. That fucker was all will power. The Bliss hit the deputy hard. He fell from his perch and hit the ground, only softened by the bush he landed in. Jacob wasted little time in collecting his prey and tossing him into the back of the car. Oh, wait. He had forgotten about Pratt, was peaches still alive? He had dropped Pratt at some point. But there he was, getting in the backseat with his “friend”.

After parking, Jacob carried the captive deputies into John’s ranch one under each arm. Bea was sitting with Faith on the couch, head in her lap. The two of them humming amazing grace together. How quickly the resistance crumbles at the chance to have sex. He had thought John was desperate. But these deputies were something else. Even  _ Peaches _ . John and Phoebe had moved to the dining table, the amount of papers having multiplied significantly. Where would they even get wedding supplies? They were cut off from the rest of the world. They got Bliss flowers, various corpses of humans and animals alike, and boring white linens that they would have to fight Joseph for. They were arguing over something inconsequential. Phoebe thought something was too expensive but John was set on having it. Of course he was a bridezilla. Good thing they didn’t have a mom, that bitch would just add to the mess. She was useless as a mother and probably would have stuck her pointed nose into everything. Then their dad would come in, drunk and with his belt-

Pratt was thrown to the floor, the thud from the impact and the pained whine he let out caught the attention of those around them. He didn’t want to show preferential treatment to any of them. They would all be dropped in the same way as all the others. He hated all of them. But at least Cooper was quiet. He dropped Cooper next to him and circled around them towards Bea. Phoebe dropped what she was doing and ran to Cooper and Pratt. John didn’t look happy as his soon to be wife doted on her brother and his boy toy. She assessed their wounds before running off to grab a med kit. Or two. Maybe three, just to be safe. Jacob sat himself on the coffee table and glowered down at Bea. She was rife with information on her sister and seemed to have no problem selling out the other deputies just as long as she had Faith. She gave him a toothy grin from her place on Faith’s lap. Faith breathed out a puff of Bliss over Bea’s face, further drugging her into peace.

“Alice is gonna wanna play cat and mouse with you. She’s probably held up in the Whitetails, booby-trapping around her hideout.” Jacob watched Bea closely, looking for any signs of deceit. He only saw Bliss. Good going Faith. She’d be an angel in no time at this rate.

“Who’s side are you on?” Pratt choked out from his place on the ground. This was the first time he spoke. He hissed through his teeth while Phoebe wrapped his broken fingers in a splint. Bea shrugged, snuggling further against Faith.

“The side that gets my sister and I laid.” She giggled. Like any of this was funny. Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose before leaving the ranch. Beatrice was not as helpful as he’d hoped she’d be. Though her sister was next on his list and she probably wanted to protect her. That was understandable, but not helpful. He got up and left the ranch. This was bullshit. Everything was bullshit. Why was he the one to play errand boy? This was garbage. They owed him. They owed him big time. They owed him a sniper tower. A good one, right off the side of the veteran’s center. Didn’t matter if he got to actually use it or not. He wanted it. It’d be red, like his weapons and plane.

Phoebe got some pillows and blankets for Cooper and Pratt. Propping them against the side of the fireplace like a little nest. It was so impractical to have a fireplace in the middle of the room. It looked tacky. Getting the bullet out of Cooper’s leg and cleaning the muck off of him was her next task. At least he wasn’t awake and wouldn’t be for a while. He was already going to be pissed when he woke up. She could only imagine how mental he’d be if he woke up covered in forest gunk and Pratt’s blood. That wouldn't be good for anyone.


	17. The idiocy continues

The first thing Cooper noticed when he woke up was Pratt asleep next to him. He looked like shit. Dark bags under his eyes, bruises littering his skin. Cooper reached over to stroke his face but was stopped with a clink. He pulled at his hand again, his movement remained restricted. Turning he looked at his wrist. He was handcuffed to the fireplace. It was a tacky fireplace. Surveying the room, he tried to figure out where he was. Pulling Pratt close to him, he sat up trying to move his arm into a more comfortable position. Wherever he was it was decorated by someone who didn’t know the first thing about interior design. He didn’t know much either, but this looked bad. Who had a fireplace in the middle of the room?

What was the theme wood? Cuz that was all that was in there. Floor to ceiling, wood. All the same type, no variety, not intricate designs, nothing. This place wasn’t built with love. Was this godforsaken cult unable to use more than one texture or color in their living spaces? Weren't they supposed to be living a simple sin free life? This smelled like greed and an attempt at showing wealth. He honestly preferred the white color scheme to whatever this was. Everything that decorated the room looked expensive but very impersonal. What did this straight single guy even like? Hunting? No there weren’t any guns or outdoorsy items. Just trophies hung sporadically one the wall. They looked bought. The house didn’t have a fun country vibe, it looked like a park visitors center. It’s not a home that’s for sure.

What sociopath lived here? He half expected some poor beaten woman to come bring them food, shaking in fear from her serial killer husband. Again, the fuck was with this fireplace? Was this a country club where old white men sat around talking shit about their wives and objectifying their daughters. Selling them off to each other’s sons to keep some bullshit big money bloodline pure. 

Instinct was telling him to get his hand free. He kept pulling his hand at different angles, making loud rattling noises from the chains. He knew it wouldn’t work. He knew how handcuffs worked. His brain didn’t listen, it just screamed for him to get free. To save Pratt and get out. After a few minutes and a lot of angry growling he decided to dislocate his thumb. It was worth a try before trying to gnaw off his hand. He would if he had to. It worked in the movies. Oh god, he sounded like Phoebe. He didn’t have any other ideas. The sound of footsteps on wood came closer and had his adrenaline pumping. He struggled harder with his thumb, damn thing wouldn't dislocate. He had too good of joints. The more he struggles the more the metal cut into his wrist. He almost resigned to breaking his thumb. The footsteps rounded into his line of sight and-

“Phoebe?” Cooper asked, dumbfounded. Phoebe was sitting herself down next to him with a medkit. She quietly patched his wrist to stop the bleeding. She looked unharmed. Which was good. But what was she doing here? She was wearing a blue, oversized dress shirt only, no pants. Oh no. Her hair was down and brushed like she recently showered. He wanted to shower. He could feel the sweat and grime from his fight in the woods still stuck to his skin. The dried blood soaked into his clothes. He itched to get clean. 

“Phoebe! Where are your pants?! What did John do?!” He whispered loudly. She blinked at him with her big, dumb eyes, and her head tilted in confusion. Was she drugged? Did John keep her in a constant state of Blissed to keep her placated? That fucker. Cooper was going to strangle him with his bare hands. Then use his shower to clean his blood off of him. Then drag his corpse to that bastard Joseph’s fucked little church and drop him at his brother’s feet.

“What? My pants are in the wash, and John didn’t do anything.” Phoebe began cleaning up the med kit. That didn’t sound right. Phoebe wouldn’t just run off with a cultist. Unless he had tickets to Cats. But John wasn’t cultured. He lived  _ here _ .

“Bullshit! You’ve been Blissed or got conditioned! John’s  _ always  _ doing something and that something is  _ always _ bad.” Cooper hissed through his teeth when Phoebe began changing the bandage on his leg.

“Nope.” She said, popping the ‘p’.

“I don’t believe you.”

“Why not?” 

“Because you’re walking around John Seed’s ranch, pantless! There’s no blood on your hands, so he’s still alive somewhere.” Phoebe blinked at Cooper, still confused, then her eyes lit up with realization. 

“Oh! Oh, Cooper, no-” 

“Look, it’s okay. Just get me out of here and we can get Dr. Lindsey to give you a rape kit after we kill John! I’ll let you give the final blow. It’s all going to be ok. I’ll be here for you and support whatever you do in regards to your lil bastard. ” Phoebe put her hand over Cooper’s cuffed wrist, she gently held it there until he looked at her. Something between disgust, and horror painted her features.

“Oh my god, Cooper, nothing like  _ that _ happened. Kidnapped? Yes. But not  _ that _ . Okay?” Cooper shifted, trying to get up and making Pratt’s head fall on his chest.

“Who’s your favorite cat?” He hissed. Phoebe rolled her eyes, her shoulders sagging. He was being difficult, the kind of difficult he got when he felt dirty. He needed a shower. Then they could talk. He always got neurotic when he felt unclean.

“Skimbleshanks, like everyone else.” Cooper’s eyes narrowed.

“What’s the worst thing about the musical?”

“Macavity’s costume is really tacky, but more so that they put Rebel Wilson in the movie adaptation.” Cooper breathed, leaning back against the brick of the fireplace. Phoebe’s head hadn’t been messed with. Empty as ever, only full of Cats. John must have manipulated her the old fashioned way. Oh god, Phoebe’s the abused housewife of the serial killer. He just had to get her out of here and away from that demon. 

“So, you’re telling me that you’re here  _ willingly _ ? And you didn’t even radio me, to say you were okay?!” His voice rising about a concerned whisper. 

“First off, they took my radio. Second, would you have believed it if I said I was?” 

“No. But you still could have called! I was worried! You’re baby and John is hot garbage on a summer day in New York city when the workers are on strike! Because of people like him!” Phoebe sat next to Cooper, patting his head.

“I know, but I like him.” 

“ _ Still _ ?! What did he bribe you with? Last I saw you, you wanted to strangle him. I want to strangle him too. We were finally on the same page. Haven’t you looked around this house. It’s tacky.” Cooper looked at Phoebe suspiciously. She clicked her tongue against her teeth.

“He didn’t bribe me with anything. Maybe a father for our kid, but nothing other than that.” She shrugged. Cooper’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw her left hand. There was a small ring with a yellow gem in the middle that had a black design on it. No, no,  _ no. _ His baby sister wasn’t getting married to a potential rapist, gaslighter, and abuser. 

Even if John wasn’t in a cult the man was still bad news. He got angry at the drop of a hat and never took responsibility for himself. It was always someone else. If he failed a test during college it was Cooper’s fault for sleeping loudly the night before. Even though he’d been up  _ longer _ than John, actually studying! Men and women would come around often looking for him only to find him with someone new. It was their fault for being sensitive and misunderstanding their relationship. John would yell and manipulate until they gave in. It was just best to do what he wanted rather than deal with his temper.

Now  _ Phoebe  _ was that someone else he would blame. Even if their marriage started out well, it wouldn’t be long until something set him off. With a baby around it would only trap her in the relationship even more. She would have to think of not only her safety but the child’s too. Cooper might not be alive to help if John remembered him. 

“I can smell you lying. Let me see that ring!” He hissed. Phoebe put her hand up to show him the engagement ring John had given her. Cooper gave her an accusatory look.

“Joseph said he’d kill me otherwise.” Phoebe looked away, guilty.

“Oh, Phoebe, that just means we have to kill him first. You don’t have to get hitched.” She was scared. He would die before letting something happen to her.

“Coop, I appreciate it, but I  _ do _ love John. Even with… All this going on.” She gestured vaguely to their surroundings. This wasn’t healthy. The relationship was based on a lie. The John she loved wasn’t real.

“You could do  _ so much _ better than John! He’s awful! Why can’t you be gay? Or find a nice man on Broadway, at least!” Cooper whined, his sister was kind and pretty, she could have  _ anyone  _ she wanted. Why did she want garbage? Phoebe shook her head as Bea laughed from just out of Cooper’s vision.

“Yeah, John Seed is a little bitch!” She giggled from the couch.

“Bea! Are you alright?” Cooper tried looking around the fireplace, straining on his arm. What was it here? He shouldn’t have been focusing on the poor placement of fireplaces. Bea walked around the hideous centerpiece and waved at Cooper. Her eyes were heavily glazed with Bliss. Why was everyone still Blissed but him? 

“Hey. I was just chillin' with Faith.” Bea rested her elbow on Phoebe’s head.

“Why am I the only one chained up?!” Cooper shouted.

“Because you’re a feral gay. The most dangerous kind.” Bea said before pushing herself off Phoebe, pushing her over in the process. She hit the floor with a soft thud and an annoyed grunt. 

“Why are you all so calm?!” Cooper shouted as Phoebe picked herself back up. They were the resistance, not the cult’s harem! This was like a shitty anime he’d seen once. There was even a child involved! Anime sucked. 

“Because I’m here with Faith.” He heard the aforementioned Seed sibling humming, as Bea laid herself back onto her lap. Fuck, she had heard all of what he said. Then again, she was willing to betray the cult. Maybe she’d be cool about? Maybe she hated John as much as he did. Well, no. No one could hate him that much. He wasn’t trying to abuse their baby sisters.

“You know what, I believe  _ you _ . Phoebe. Why don’t you go get Dodger and Thomson to come help us?!” Cooper shouted. Why was the only one that cared?

“I don’t know why you don’t believe me.” She pouted. Bea snorted.

“Because it’s John and John sucks. He can’t even be bothered to hide his weed. It’s just like, right there!” She said from her spot, not intending to get up again. Pratt shifted against Cooper, mumbling something about being weak. 

Shifting his attention from his sister to the man in his arms, Cooper’s demeanor changed. From anger to love just like that. He brought his free hand to the sleeping man’s face gently moving the hair away from his eyes. The man must have been tired, he needed his sleep. Pratt’s sleep wasn’t restful. Bringing the blanket back over the both of them, Cooper noticed how nicely the other man fit in his arms. His eyes opened slowly, and it took him a minute for him to register that he was temporarily safe. Wrapped in a blanket, surrounded by friends and embracing his maybe boyfriend.

“Nice dream…” Pratt murmured, resting his head on Cooper’s chest again. He closed his eyes, any moment he would wake up to his own personal hell. Starved, beaten and in a cage praying to be saved. But this was nice. Cooper was always nice to him. Dream Cooper ran his hand through his hair. It felt nice. He was warm and surrounded by soft blankets. They were a nice touch by his mind too. Maybe he finally cracked. His mind was so broken that his dreams were extra vivid. Was that a thing? He didn’t dream much even before everything started. Now any dream he had was replaced by a nightmare and the song that turned him into a monster. But this was nice. If only it was real. If only something nice would happen. 

“You’re not dreaming, Staci, you’re just gay!” Bea shouted. Faith shushed her softly. Pratt’s eyes snapped open again. He tried to push himself off of Cooper, horribly embarrassed and tangled in blankets, but yelped when he put weight on his broken fingers. Fuck. 

“I thought you would have remembered that.” Phoebe said, more confused about him forgetting his broken fingers than surprised.

“Well, I didn’t! I’ve been having a rough time recently!” He shouted, he sounded on the verge of tears. He was tired, physically and emotionally drained, and embarrassed. Having everyone else see how weak he was wasn’t part of the dream. They already thought he was the useless one. He cupped his broken hand to his chest. He was making a fool of himself. He curled up on himself, his mind spiraling quickly into dark places. 

“Oh, Pratt.” Phoebe said sympathetically. A strong arm pulled him in for an embrace. 

“I know, Pratt. You’ve survived so much all on your own. You’re a lot stronger than you think.” Cooper said gently as he held the other man close. It had been so long since he heard any sort of kind word. He held onto him, fingers digging into the fabric of his uniform. Cooper firmly rubbed his back comfortingly, grounding him in the moment.

There were so many things he wanted to say to the handcuffed man. They had danced around each other back in the department. It had taken him a while to accept his attraction to the man. Anytime he had worked up the nerve to say something to the out man something always came up. One time Phoebe came in, screaming about a live action Cats film. Another Bea and Alice were fighting and Bea was literally thrown into them. Then there was the time he got attacked by a goddamn wolverine! Whitehorse had to come in to cover for him that day and figure out how the fuck it got into the station. It was almost comedic if it weren't so frustrating. 

The end of the world was coming. He was running out of time. Now here they were in a pile of blankets beaten and bruised with little hope for escaping. He stayed there for a moment, head against the chest of the man he cared most about. He accepted he was going to die a few days after Jacob captured him. What else was he going to lose? Propping a hand on Cooper’s chest he sat himself up. 

“Cooper, I-” He was cut off.

“After all this is over, want to finally go on date?” Cooper asked with a smile. He knew what Pratt was going to say. He did that on purpose. Pratt threw his head back and laughed, tears rolling down his face. Of course the finally interruption was going to be Jack fucking Cooper getting fed up and asking him first. Cooper’s hand held onto his waist, thumb rubbing small circles to his side. 

“Yeah, yeah I would like that.” He said once he could stop laughing. He wiped the last of the tears from his eyes. It only took the end of the world for them to finally get together.

“Ha. Gay! Get a room!” Bea shouted before pulling Faith into a kiss. Cooper pulled noisily at the cuffs keeping him to the fireplace.

“I’d love to, but I’m stuck to the shittiest fireplace I’ve ever seen!” He snapped. Was no one going to let him out of these cuffs? The key to the handcuffs was visibly in Phoebe’s pocket. 

“Are you going to let me out of these?” He asked Phoebe, rattling the cuffs to get her attention.

“You’re gonna hurt John, or try to make me leave.” He frowned. It stung that she would rather protect that bastard who regularly drowned people than free her own brother. Pratt looked between the siblings.

“Could you move him to the couch?” Pratt asked.

“No! That’s where  _ we _ are!” Bea shouted.Pratt rolled his eyes.

“Doesn’t John have more than one couch?” Phoebe hummed and picked at her finger nails.

“He wants all of you to stay in this room.” She murmured.

“Cooper can’t be comfortable like this.”

“I’m not!” Cooper added. Knowing that anything else he said would just make Phoebe leave him here.

“Anywhere else in the room is fine. Besides, He’ll listen to you.” Pratt reasoned. Phoebe looked between Cooper and Pratt. She chewed her lip nervously before nodding slowly. 

“Um, okay. But you have to stay in this room, okay?” Phoebe took the key from her pocket and unlocked the cuff that was around the fireplace. She then pulled Pratt’s hand close and handcuffed them together. The two men looked surprised. 

“Okay. This way we don’t have to worry about any impromptu fights. Now I can go scrounge up some clothes you and Pratt can wear. Then you guys can shower.” Jumping to her feet, Phoebe walked away. Cooper sighed and stood up. The two made their way over to a chair while the two women hogged the couch. Well at least they would be clean at the end of the day.


	18. Have a seat right there, Mr. Seed

Making candles was easier than Eva had first thought. She sat next to Joseph, watching him dip wicks into melted beeswax. Not hard at all. Just heat the wax until it was liquid, then dip the wick in, let it dry, then rinse and repeat. It seemed a bit tedious and kind of boring with just black and white for colors. If she had more colors then she would really be able to make some art. Joseph would probably say no to that though. He was really into his boring color scheme. Jacob would let her use different colors and she didn’t care what John thought. John was a loser and no one loved him. He had feminine hips. If he died no one would cry. At least making candles was better than making soap. It wasn’t fun like the youtubers suggested. It was animal fat and lye, that you added nice smelling things to and dumped it all together in a pot and cry. It was gross. It would maybe have been fun if she could use different colors but, again, Joseph was a square who didn’t like fun. Was it because he was into God? Probably not. Jerome would use color if he made soap and candles. Jerome was a cool dude.

She wanted to learn how to kill better. She had gotten a taste for death and killing and she wanted to end the lives of more creatures. It was a powerful feeling to have life in your hand. She wasn’t, like, a serial killer or anything. It was more about the hunt. It made her feel funny on the inside. She ignored it. Some of the game animals in the county were pretty heavy, though. They would be too heavy for her thirteen year old arms to carry. Maybe she could start small and work her way up. Frodo was shaping up to be a good hunting companion, if not a little cowardly. But Joseph had said no. That asshole wouldn't know fun if it came up and bit him. That would be funny though. A dog biting Joseph. Her next wolf would be named Fun and she would train to playfully bite him when he was being a killjoy. He was also really touchy feely. Sitting close to her and touching her casually. It was weird and to make it worse his hands were clammy. Plus, he still smelled like Nancy. That was unpleasant.

Where was she anyway? She hadn’t seen her since she forcibly shaved her in the bathroom. The Seeds seemed pretty peeved when she’d told him that Nancy hit her with her gross old lady hands. Maybe he sent her somewhere else? Or excommunicated her? Oh! Maybe he killed her! That would be great! Not only had Jacob given her a dog he probably killed her worst enemy, Nancy Nolastname. This would be a dream come true. She would need to cook something nice for Jacob because she super owed him for that one. Maybe he strangled her. That would be so cool. Maybe they could make soap out of her. Serve that bitch right. 

Eva felt a hand rub her back. Joseph was weird. She looked up and gave him a wry smile then tried to refocus back on the work in front of her. Her candle was coming out pretty darn great if she said so herself, and she did. Yeah maybe it was lopsided and too thick but it was still cool. She tried to ignore Joseph’s lingering hand when he took the candle from her. He took out a knife and carved their weird little cross on to it. It looked pretty cool, if not in too many places around the compound. She knew they were in the USA and flags are always everywhere but this was a little excessive. He must really have liked that design, especially since he had it tattooed on his back. She knew priests took their religion seriously, but this guy was a giant nerd about it.

“What’s the symbol mean?” Eva asked as Joseph handed her back the candle. He smiled at her.

“It’s the insignia for the project.” Was that it? Ugh. He was so  _ boring _ . Everything was project this and God that. Didn’t he have any other interests. Even John liked things outside of being kind of religious. Didn’t that nerd like planes? His jacket was covered with them. What a nerd. But at least that was something he liked. And the word “YES” but that might just be a weird fetish. 

“Where are John, Faith and Jacob?” Joseph’s smile became tight and he cleared his throat. What? Did he not like his siblings? Was it because they were more interesting than him? No, she had it! Joseph liked aviators, those really yellow ones. Though that wasn’t really a defining characteristic.

“You’re certainly fond of my siblings.” He picked up another wick and began dipping another candle. Eva shrugged. Wasn’t that a good thing?

“Faith is really nice, John’s fun to pick on and Jacob reminds me of my dad. When he’s not knocking me out, dropping me or slamming a door in my face.” Joseph nodded along with her as she spoke. Her words were concerning to say the least. Of course, he hadn’t spent much time with her. He didn’t realize that this would be as detrimental to their relationship as it had been. It didn’t even seem like she liked spending time with him. He was more… Reserved than his siblings and always working. He would have to figure out a way to remedy this. But her seeing Jacob as a parental figure was… Not good. It was good that she liked them yes, but she would soon be above them. The Mother couldn’t look to the heralds as figures of authority. It would send the wrong message. Yes, they were from Georgia, but that didn’t mean the stereotypes applied to them. He wasn’t depraved like John. 

“They’ve been preparing for John’s wedding.” He said, watching Eva from the corner of his eye. Her jaw dropped and her eyes went wide. That was insane! He didn’t even have a girlfriend  _ or _ a boyfriend! Did they get him a mail order bride? Did those still exist? Or was this a Ninety Day Fiance type thing? Poor John was going to get taken advantage of by a gold digger. This hussy just wanted a green card. 

“Someone wants to marry him?” She gasped. Joseph laughed and ruffled Eva’s hair. He didn’t seem nearly as concerned about this situation as she was. Didn’t he want his brother to marry for love? Apparently not. How sad. How cynical. Joseph didn’t believe in love anymore, did he? That was sad. Who hurt him? He should get a tinder. Or a therapist. Or both.

“Yes, you might be familiar with her. Deputy Miller.” Eva gasped again, louder. Phoebe needed a green card? Why didn’t she get a work Visa? Was she finally being fired? Where was she from? Wasn’t she adopted? Didn’t that make her a citizen? 

“I thought Phoebe would have higher standards. Wait, so is he the one who got her pregnant?” Joseph dipped the candle he had a few more times before looking at her fully.

“I’m ashamed to say so. John is not the most... Responsible in his personal life. It goes against our preaching to have a child before marriage.” Joseph moved a stray piece of hair out of her face. Eva moved back, away from him. She probably shouldn’t let him know she was two when her parents got married. He would kick her out and make her live on the streets until her grandpa found her. She would get got by wolves. Wait.

“Is John a prostitute?” Is that how he afforded his ranch? Being the only prostitute in town. Joseph choked on air, or maybe it was his own saliva.

“ _ What _ ?” Did he not know? 

“It’s the only thing he’s ‘good’ at, right? He needs to pay the bills somehow.” She continued. This was all coming together.

“Eva-”

“Did Phoebe hire him and she ended up the duff?”

“What?”

“Is everyone in on it aren’t they? Is Eden's gate a cover so grandpa doesn't arrest all of you. There are a lot of people that live here. It doesn’t make sense that they live at church. On top of that they are all coming and going at all hours. Wait. Is this a brothel?”

“What-”

“No you don't get to talk. I know what you’re planning and it's disgusting!” She exclaimed. Joseph started to sweat. 

“You’re going to make me into one of your call girls. Nancy is too old for anyone to find attractive so you had her groom me, you sick piece of shit. That's why you have your people not give me underwear to wear, To get used to it. You’ll sell my virginity off to the highest bidder. I don't want my first time to go to Hurk Sr. You’re not a priest, you are a pimp!” That's why he had Nancy shave her genitals. She knew how this worked, she watched Law and Order SVU. 

“Eva! This isn’t a brothel. There isn’t anything like that happening. No one is selling themselves. You’re not in any danger. John was a lawyer. That’s where he got his money, and our people live here off his dime. He and deputy Miller were quietly together for a long time before this happened. They wouldn’t be engaged if not for their history.” He clarified. He was horrified that she thought he was so sinful he would profit off his brother’s lust. Who spun such tales to his little wife? Did Nancy say such things about his family?

“Huh, I guess that makes sense” Eva shrugged. Ok sounds good. 

“Do you want to get married someday, Eva?” Joseph asked. He was looking at her so intensely. She tried not to keep his gaze, looking anywhere but his eyes. He always did that, and it was creepy every time. Was he mad at her? It’s not like she called the police on him or anything. The hair on the back of her neck stood up, but she wasn’t sure why. Something felt so  _ off _ in that moment. Maybe it was the way he asked it? She scooched herself further away from him, feeling better with the distance. She was thirteen. She didn’t have to think about these things for a long time. Also she didn’t know anyone her own age. Who would she marry? Everyone was too old and Phoebe was marrying Joseph’s crack whore brother. 

“Uh, not really. I’ve kind of been in a prolonged state of mourning over the traumatic deaths of my parents. That’s what my therapist said, at least.” Eva nervously picked at her nails, looking down at the ground. Joseph gave her a sympathetic smile, putting his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him. He actually looked like a normal person for once.

“I understand. It was very difficult for me to come to terms with the loss of my wife.”  _ You _ . He wanted to tell her so badly. But would she understand? She was still so young, so new to the project. She didn’t trust him enough. Not yet. He needed her to know he was genuine. That God whispered truths in his ear. That He had blessed him with a second chance to have his family. Eva seemed so surprised. It hurt that she hadn’t been granted her past memories. Made everything so much more difficult than it otherwise would be. Especially with his brothers. 

“You were married once?” She asked, she didn’t move away when he got closer. He nodded slowly. Maybe this was why he didn’t have anybody, why he didn’t believe in love. It didn’t explain the starring though. Unless it wrecked him psychologically. Could that happen?

“I was. She was killed in a car wreck that took her life.” Tears pricked at Eva’s eyes.

“That’s how my parents died! A shitty lawyer t boned them and they died right in front of me!” She looked down at her thighs, fighting back the urge to cry. Her collarbone and wrist hurt. Goddamn ghost pains. Crying was for those without blood on their hands. She was a cold blooded killer! Killers didn’t cry. They didn’t have emotions. But thinking about the actual moment of impact that took her parents from her, it was so vivid in her mind, it hurt so bad. She could see the glass that cut deep into her mother’s throat. She choked to death on her own blood. Her father had been in the passenger seat. The only thing between him and the other car was his door. There was so much blood. She would never forget that night. It was seared into her brain and haunted her when she closed her eyes. So, so much blood. Joseph took the opportunity to pull Eva close, holding her against him. Making a show of him comforting her as he had her sit in his lap.

“The lord giveth, and the lord taketh away. He has a plan for all of us, Eva. Your parents smile at you from above.” Eva nodded, sniffling and covering her face with her hands. She was so embarrassed to be crying. He’d need to let her know it was okay. That he would take care of her, and she could cry all she needed to. Joseph ran his hand up and down her arm, holding her to his chest and rocking softly back and forth. This was good. This was a perfect chance to become closer to her. He let her cry on him, offering her stability, warmth and understanding. The bare minimum of what a good husband should be. Eventually she would come to him for emotional comfort. Instead of that judge she had. He would just have to bide his time. He would much prefer she cry on his shoulder, than into the coat of the beast Jacob had given her. It was selfish, he knew that. But still, he wanted her to associate comfort, love and acceptance with  _ him _ . Not his brother, or the hound.

“Grandpa thinks one of the reasons I wanted a dog so bad is that I’m trying to fill left by the loss of my parents.” Maybe he was right. But she loved Frodo so much, and he loved her. He was always near her when she was sad, even now he was lying at her feet. When she was happy, Frodo was happy just to be around her. What a good dog. What a good friend. He was the best dog. He was the best gift she had ever gotten. Jacob must have really cared about her. And she would kill anything that hurt her dog, the way Jacob taught her. Or will teach her. She still had a lot to learn.

“Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Joseph cupped one of Eva’s cheeks and tilted her head so she would look at him. Her cheeks were stained with tears. He brushed his thumb over her soft skin, wiping the tears away. 

“If there’s anything I could do to make things easier for you, let me know.” He watched her eyes fill with another wave of tears that she desperately fought against. Joseph brought their foreheads together and looked into her big, brown eyes.

“God grieves with us, Eva. We must find comfort where he provides it.” Eva sniffled and rubbed her eyes, choking back a sob. She took a few seconds to calm her breathing before she met his eyes.

“Okay. I just do-don’t want to be alone right now.” Joseph smiled and placed a kiss on her forehead. He allowed Eva to move away from him, back to her seat. He held her hand in his, gently rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand.


	19. Jacob gets some

There was a cautiousness to their steps as Jacob and three of his men started walking into the forest where Deputy Alice Rook was last seen. It was still light out but the sun was getting low in the sky behind them. This would be an advantage when they finally closed in on her. This Rook was harder to track but made the mistake of hiding out in the whitetails. This was his turf. The only thing that unnerved him was that they were traveling uphill to get to her. But there wasn't much he could do about that. 

It was quiet and almost serine. Jacob didn't see anything that indicated that they were getting any closer. The ambient noise of the forest tried to lull him into a sense of security. Birds above head chirped, wind rustled the leaves and grass gently, the loudest sound were his men’s footsteps. He had them walk ahead of him. They all stopped and aimed their guns when a loud noise of movement came. A deer jumped out from the bush, looked at them and pranced off. One of his men chuckled, getting rid of his nerves, and stepped forward. 

_ Click _

Quicker than he could comprehend sharpened wooden stakes impaled themselves into his flesh. Jacob watched the man drop. Dead. Blood pooled around the cultist’s body onto the forest floor. The bright red contrasting with green of the foliage. It should have been sickening. But he was Jacob's seed. He ate people. 

“We’re getting closer.” He said, stepping over the body. It would mark the way back. The other two hesitantly nodded, looking at their fallen comrade. The man was weak. He got what he deserved for falling for such a trap. It had been tripped by a wire. They watched for those as they continued up the mountain. Finding at least three more. He had them dismantled to make their way back down easier. It wouldn't do them any good to get killed on the way back. The easy part. Jacob started marking the trees with his knife. Who knew how many traps she planted on this mountain. This was the safe way up. It was best not to stray from this. How long did it take her to set all these up? 

They came across yet another trap. Alice must have been losing her touch. The wire on this was more visible than the others. Not by much but just enough for someone who was looking for them to see them. Jacob tisked and shook his head. He gestured for one of his men to dismantle it. One of them, he didn’t know their names, went over to where the trip wire was tied. Jacob stretched and looked back down the mountain when he heard a cry of pain come from one of his men. Looking back the man that had gone to undo the trap had most of his leg stuck in a hole. He tried to pull his leg back out but it only further damaged him. 

“There’s something in there.” The man cried out as Jacob inspected what happened. As he pushed the dirt away from the trap he caught a glimpse of what this was. Stakes had been embedded into the hole at an angle whereas the leg was pulled up they would only go deeper into the flesh. She had planned for them to find and disassemble her traps. To think they were one step ahead of her. Alice Rook was smart; there was no denying that. 

Jacob sighed and stood up. The man, still struggling to try and free himself, didn’t notice Jacob aiming his pistol at him. It was for the best. The weak must be culled. 

_Bam_! And the man slumped over. He only had one man left. He heard the deep thud of a body hitting the ground and looked over. Scratch that. It was only him left. He ducked for cover. Alice had killed his last man with a head shot. His unsilenced gun must have given their position away. Fuck. His heart raced, not in fear, but excitement. He hadn’t had a fair fight in a long time. He had underestimated her. But not anymore. Alice Rook was undeniably smart and deadly. She had been steps ahead this entire time. As much as Jacob wanted a fight to the death, he had a job to do. To bring her back alive. That added to the challenge of hunting this woman. Jacob grinned, this was going to be fun. 

He moved from cover to cover slowly making his way up the mountain. He did have to avoid traps and narrowly avoided a number of them. Bullets whizzed past him as he moved after carefully assessing safe cover. Slowly but surely he was making his way up to her. He looked up to where the bullets were coming from. He could see movement, he could see  _ her _ . She did look like Beatrice Rook, but held herself very differently. While Beatrice was confident, she was clumsy, reckless and stupid. Alice wasn’t any of those things. Even from here he could tell she was fully in control of every action she took. She thought everything through before she acted. If he made one wrong move she would kill him. She was strong.

He decided he would try and circle behind her. Try and throw her off him. She was looking for him. He remained quiet and low to the ground. She wasn't at the top of the mountain. There was still some elevation left. He would get up there and take her out with a bliss bullet. It wasn’t going to be the most satisfying win. Maybe after all this stupidity was over, he would let her go and hunt her again. 

He crept up to the ledge overlooking the rest of the raised ground, the setting sun making it difficult to see. Jacob was confident he could make the shot either way. He raised his gun readying the shot. Then a rope caught his ankle and pulled him up into a tree. He just dangled there for a moment before realizing he was caught. Though unlike the other traps, it didn’t kill him. Was Alice going to torture him for information? Good luck, bitch, his lips were sealed. He would die before he betrayed his brothers. 

“I can’t believe you actually fell for that!” He heard her laugh. Despite her taunting, she sounded more mature than Bea. At least he wouldn’t be tortured by an adult sized child. He heard her footsteps get closer as she made her way to him. She made the mistake of keeping his hands free. He would strangle her when she got close enough. Who would be laughing then? 

"What happened, big man? I thought you were the king of the mountains? Best hunter around? Must be embarrassed, getting caught by a little girl." He hated this. She should have killed him. Then he wouldn’t have to go to John’s stupid wedding. She had planned all this out to humiliate him. He finally saw her up close and that only made it worse. She was breathtaking. She was covered in mud and dirt for camouflage, with spatterings of blood that he assumed wasn’t hers. Maybe she was going to slit his throat and bleed him, then use his corpse to taunt his brothers, or make a wallet out of his skin. Fuck, she was hot. He almost wanted to die by her hands. 

"Don't know how many little girls could set up traps like these. You got a woman's touch to it." All thoughts of strangling her left his mind as she got close. She took his rifle and his pistol. Her hands roamed his body in search of other hidden weapons. There were a lot of knives and she knew how to handle each one. 

“Am I going to have to strip search you, Mr. Seed?” She teased as she pocketed each weapon one by one. 

“Depends on if you’re stupid enough to let me down or not. Didn’t they ever tell you to stay away from wolves, little girl?” What was he saying? He sounded like a drunk John. He had to shut up. 

“I’m not a little girl, and I’m far from frightened of the big bad wolf.”

“You should be.” Stop talking. Why was this working? 

“Whatchya’ gonna do? Bite me?” Her voice lowered to a seductive pitch. He wanted to. He wanted to mark up her skin as badly as he wanted her to do the same to him. Wanted to crush her against him, make her bleed and have her rip his skin from his bones. What was wrong with him? This wasn’t what he was here to do. Then again… What was to stop him from enjoying his catch before bringing her in?

“Let me go and you’ll find out how bad my bite is, girly.” He watched as she looked him over, actually considering his offer. 

“Bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you, daddy?” Like a lit match on gasoline, his blood ignited. His body fought gravity, his blood divided between going to his head, and going… Elsewhere. All he could think of was how he wanted her, what he would do to her, the ways he’d make her scream. She grabbed his favorite knife and cut him down. He reached for her but she backed away with a teasing smirk on her face.

“Nu-uh. You gotta work for it, daddy.” He couldn't help the growl that left him. He lunged at her and she darted off. In his current state, running after her was going to be more of a pain than he really needed it to be. What he wouldn’t give for a cold shower, or a lecture from Joseph.

He didn’t let her out of his sight as she weaved through the trees and down the mountain. Occasionally, she would look back at him. He had almost caught her a few times, but she slipped through his fingers at the last second. She was taunting him. Was this some sort of game to her? When he got his hands on her, he’d show her just how serious he took his hunts. She’d make an excellent soldier for his ranks. He wouldn’t even have to train her. She was strong. He could replace Pratt, he was weak. Jacob could keep Alice by his side at all times. She’d be a fantastic body guard and would make for an even better mate. She’d look amazing pregnant with his- God, he was sounding like John. Or worse, Joseph. Disgusting. He was as bad as his degenerate brothers. Not that they needed to know. The last thing he wanted was John carving “Lust” onto him somewhere. 

Alice looked back at him again and then changed her direction, darting left. He quickly followed suit. She was smart, but she didn't account for the cliff side that would box her in. He tackled her before she could take out that grappling hook that all the deputies had for some reason. Were those standard issue now?

“You wanted me to bite ya’, didn’t you, sweetheart?”

Jacob brought his mouth to her neck, he needed to mark her in the most instinctual way. It was a basic need ingrained into the most human part of him that he was happy to indulge in. He slowly and thoroughly worked over every inch of the exposed flesh of her neck. Alice let out a loud involuntary moan. He smiled against her throat and worked that spot until he was satisfied by the size of the mark. The noises she made fueled him further. Her hands worked to remove his shirt. She pulled his mouth to her’s, and bit his lips bloody. He groaned, rolling his hips against her thigh as she dragged her nails across his back, drawing more blood. He pushed himself up and pulled his knife from it’s holster. 

Alice looked up at him with heavy lidded eyes as he ran the blade under her shirt. She arched her back, the knife leaving a red line where it dragged against her toned stomach. He sliced her shirt open, stopping just under her bust. He took a moment to debate on if he wanted to cut her bra off, but decided against it. They had somewhere to be after this, after all. Instead, he pushed it up, allowing her tits to bounce free. They weren’t the biggest he’d ever seen, but by god were they perfect. Round, soft and perky. Fuck she was hot. He leaned down, taking one of her nipples roughly between his teeth. With one of her breasts in his mouth, he ran one of his calloused hands up her side and began pawing at her other tit. She moaned appreciatively and bucked her hips up against his.

Jacob sat up on his knees, looming over Alice, he began undoing her jeans. Jacob hooked his fingers around her waistband and roughly tugged hard. He quickly grew frustrated with how tight her pants were, it made them more difficult to get off and he was out of practice as it was. Eventually, Alice impatiently kicked him away. She shoved her pants down as far as they would go, only kept on by her boots.

Alice surged upward and pressed her lips against his, not as violently as the first kiss. Jacob broke away from Alice’s mouth in favor of leaving more hickies and bite marks across her neck and shoulders. Her hands ran down his chest and over his stomach, stopping to playfully tug at his waistband, earning her a bite hard enough to draw blood.

She deftly undid his belt and pulled his cock free from his pants. Alice had never wanted a man inside her so badly. Jacob was big, already at full mast and the head was leaking. His cock was curved towards his stomach, and had a few angry veins on the underside. She gave him a few teasing strokes before positioning herself on her knees and forearms. Alice had thought about being on her hands and knees, but something told her she was in for a rough ride.

“Hurry up and fuck me, old man.” A breathless laugh left her.

Ever the soldier, Jacob didn’t waste any time before getting in position behind her. He gripped her hips and took himself in his hand. He hadn’t thought to check to see how ready she was before he started to push into her but, fuck, she was soaked. Alice mewled when he bottomed out, her head resting on her arms. He didn’t give her time to adjust to his size. The much larger man set a harsh pace, pulling her hips back into his each time he’d rut into her. Her back bowing in submission. Every time he hilted inside her, Alice moaned like a whore. She was absolutely shameless in how much she was enjoying this. 

“You’re just a bitch in heat, aren’t you? So eager for cock that you willingly give yourself over to the enemy.” He managed to sound far more composed than he actually was. Alice whined loudly and pressed herself back against him, matching his pace. Jacob chuckled, she either enjoyed the sound of his voice, or being degraded. Either way, he was more than happy to give her more.

“You don’t want to fight at all, do you? You just want to be fucked good, isn’t that right?” Alice groaned and nodded frantically. He brought his hand down to slap her ass, appreciating the way her skin turned red and grunting when she clamped down around him. 

Jacob wasn’t going to last much longer and he knew it. Neither was she by the feel of it. He could feel the way she trembled under him more than he could see it. The way her thighs shook and her breathing became unsteady. He probably didn’t need to give her clit attention to get her off, and he would certainly train her body to not need it, but he was so fucking close. He refused to embarrass himself by cumming first, like an over excited school boy. Letting go of her hips with one hand, he buried the now free hand between her folds. Alice practically sobbed when his rough fingers began assaulting her sensitive bud. One of her hands gripped his wrist. She began to incoherently moan things into her arm. Praises, swears and begging from what he could gather and, god, her voice was so wrecked, so  _ broken _ . He couldn’t wait to break her in other ways. See how much she could take. Bring her to the limit again and again just to watch her fall apart.

Fall apart she did. After a few more harsh thrusts, and a pinch to her clit, Alice cried out. Her body went stiff as her orgasm wracked her body. Her deliciously tight cunt convulsed around him. Jacob pressed his face to the crook of Alice’s neck and bit her hard as he came, muffling the groan that tore itself from his throat. He held her tightly, one hand around her throat and the other still between her legs. He gave a few last aborted thrusts inside of her as they rode out their highs. He’d find her some plan B or something after. Because fuck, he was defiantly keeping her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have no idea on how to write sex. We apologize for the inconvenience.


	20. Chapter 20

Phoebe sat on John’s lap on the couch, finalizing their wedding plans. The wedding hadn’t taken as long as the two originally thought. When you didn’t have a lot of options it made things a bit easier to plan. Luckily white was already the color scheme of the entire cult. No dress had to be bought because the old ladies were busy sewing it. It was going to be a cute wedding even if it killed them. She wasn’t going to get married in anything but the best. Joseph called it greed, she called it standards. John may have tried to placate Joseph but he did agree with her. Bea and Faith had gone off to the hangar to smoke John’s table weed.

That left Cooper and Pratt alone at the kitchen table handcuffed together. Phoebe thought it was cute. If her phone had any charge she would have taken a picture and sent it to their mom. John was a tad on edge because no one had seen Jacob for two days. Not a single radio call, or even an update from his Chosen. John knew his brother was strong and capable, but he’d never gone so long without any sort of communication. Not even a quick radio to make a quip at Phoebe's expense. No, no Jacob was fine. He had to be. If that fucker didn't die in the desert he wasn’t going to die in the middle of Montana. He wasn’t worried. He really wasn’t. The only other time this had happened they had been separated by CPS. Nope, not going to think about that. They were planning for his wedding. The wedding where Jacob would be his best man. Jacob was almost invincible. Still, he had an awful gnawing feeling in his gut. His fiance gently turned his head away from the papers, making him look at her. She looked concerned.

“Everything okay, babe?” John sighed and leaned back against the cushions. She knew him so well. 

“Yes, it’s just that Jacob hasn’t sent any updates regarding the other Rook.” He said, idly rubbing Phoebe’s leg. She was the light of his life. Just being near her made him feel better.

“He probably got sick of you and ran off. Cause he hates you, like everyone else.” Cooper hissed from across the room. Breaking the Phoebe induced tranquility. Bea and Faith stumbled in from the front door, holding onto each other and giggling. That hadn’t even asked to take his weed. They probably smoked it all too. Rude

“Oh no, they  _ fuckin _ .” Bea laughed, leading Faith to the pile of cushions and pillows Cooper and Pratt had occupied before. The two of them curled up and began snuggling. Phoebe was happy that Bea was happy. The two of them were so cute. Maybe they would get married next. Yay, more weddings! Ones she didn’t have to plan. 

“No! No! I refuse to believe that Alice is as bad as the two of you!” Cooper shouted, standing up, the handcuffs roughly pulling Pratt’s injured hand with him. He let out a yelp of pain that had Cooper’s attention going back to him. He whispered some apologies. 

“Oh no, Coop. Alice was  _ super _ -” Bea stifled a yawn.

“Hot for that crazy fucker last I talked to her.” She pulled her girlfriend closer, tucking Faith’s head under her chin. Faith shifted into a more comfortable cuddling position, optimizing their closeness. That's how the gays do it. John pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

“Your friends are certainly interesting.” He said through clenched teeth. Phoebe hummed and kissed his temple.

“They aren’t the absolute worst.” John sat up straight again, shifting Phoebe to sit next to him.

“Phoebe, the absolute worst is your shit taste in partners! First that bitch, Cathay, and now this prick! You’re drawn to abusers, Feebs!” Cooper snapped, hands balled into fists on the table. Pratt had his hand on Copper’s arm, trying to calm him. It wasn’t really working. Phoebe wrapped her arms around John and stuck her tongue out at her brother. John gripped her arm tightly, not enough to hurt, but enough to let her know that it would be a bad idea to not let him go. She moved back towards the other end of the couch, pouting. John stood up and made his way over towards Cooper and Pratt.

“John.” Phoebe’s voice was soft, but still one of warning. She knew there was bad blood between them. She had hoped this close to the wedding John would at least be civil. She knew Cooper was never going to let what happened go. One that went entirely unignored. He stood over Cooper, hands resting on the table. Knowing full well the taller man couldn’t get up or do anything. Even standing would hurt his precious Pratt. Not only that, he was unarmed and there were many,  _ many _ armed guards around the property. Even if Cooper was stupid enough to try anything he would be gunned down in a manner of seconds. The only drawback would be Phoebe’s tears. 

“Let me make something perfectly clear,  _ deputy _ . The only reason you’re still alive is because  _ my fiance _ wants you to walk her down the aisle. You’re on very thin ice. Let’s not spill any blood on it, hm? It doesn’t necessarily need to be your’s.” Cooper gritted his teeth at the threat. John looked pointedly at Pratt, his words dripped with venom. Pratt seized up like a frightened goat and fell back off his chair, pulling Cooper with him. He was having a panic attack. John stood to his full height and clicked his tongue. He watched Cooper’s attention shift fully to the frightened man on the ground. He moved, blocking John from Pratt’s line of sight. He didn’t hear the hurried footsteps coming up behind him.

“John!” Phoebe scolded as she tried to push past him, intent on assisting Cooper with Pratt. He caught her arm and began pulling her back, as she reached for her brother, towards the couch.

“Tut-tut, Phoebe. We still have so much to do.” He held her next to the couch for a short while, he gave her a would-be charming smile, while she pouted at him. It was almost a glare. She couldn’t quite make it one. How cute. Eventually, she acquiesced and sat down, going back to the planning. Occasionally she looked back over to Cooper and Pratt, still on the floor. She would be a great mother. He drew her attention back, asking her opinion on something. 

Then the door flew open. No, it was  _ kicked _ off its hinges. Everyone looked to the sudden intrusion to see Jacob carrying Alice Rook bridal style. Their clothes were torn to bits. Jacob was covered in... Bruises and obvious, bleeding bite marks. He ignored everyone and made a beeline for the stairs, given how much blood and mud they were covered in, it was easy to assume they were heading for the shower. Jacob’s back was worse than his front, hell it was almost as bad as his face. He was covered in deep scratch marks that were also still bleeding. Those might get infected. If Jacob would let Phoebe take a look at them, he’d probably be fine. But he seemed to have some kind of vendetta against her. For some reason.

“Be careful with the doors up there! They’re handmade!” John shouted. He heard his doors be slammed and winced. Jacob never listened to him. Bea hummed and giggled.

“I  _ told _ you they were fuckin!” Bea slurred loudly, she and Faith burst into a fit of giggling. No,no,no John didn’t want to hear about Jacob getting his dick wet. His brother was old and his face was all messed up. Alice had weird taste. Ew, he thought about it. An hour later, Jacob and Alice came back down from the bathroom. Alice wobbled her way to the pile of girls on the floor and laid on top of Bea, a giddy smile on her face. Jacob went down the hall, towards the kitchen.

“Gross, get out of here. You’ll infect Rachel. She’s impressionable.” Bea whined.

“Oh my god, you reek of pot. Where did you even get it?” Alice laughed.

“It was John’s. He just leaves it out. It was  _ so _ ripe for the smokin.” Bea poked her sister in the side. Alice hissed through clenched teeth. 

“Stop, I’m sore.” She whined, slapping her hand away. Bea gagged, shoving Alice off of her and onto the floor. The blond groaned with pain when she hit the ground. With the bridal party assembled, John radioed Joseph. Maybe after the wedding he would finally get these sinners out of his house.


	21. The wedding

Everyone was in a tizzy getting the venue ready for the wedding. Eva had never been to one before, let alone witness the behind the scene preparations. Men and women ran around like chickens without their heads, she didn't realize weddings were this stressful. The theme was white, how boring. Flowers were being brought in, as they passed her, her head started feeling weird. At least they were pretty. Better than the airplane accents. Those were stupid. They were probably John’s idea. Phoebe was too cool to incorporate nerd stuff like this.

She’d been put in a pale blue sundress with a white cardigan, white stockings, and black Mary Jane shoes. Her hair had been curled and pulled back in a fancy bun. The older woman fussed over her for hours. Eva couldn’t imagine how long it was going to take Phoebe to get ready. They hadn’t given her any make up, which she thought was weird. Maybe it was a religious thing? Wasn’t that one of the main parts of getting all dolled up? She didn’t really mind it. The thought of those women going at her face with makeup made her shiver. No thank you. 

Jacob had left deputy Pratt to watch her. She wasn’t sure  _ why _ exactly she needed to be watched, but her grandpa did the same thing. What would Pratt do if something bad happens? Nothing, Pratt was a little bitch. Though he did seem more jumpy lately. Wonder what happened. Nothing good. At least Pratt wasn’t Nancy. He didn’t smell weird, and he didn’t bitch at her. He also didn't shave her genitals and hit her. She looked up at the suit clad man. He was all bruised, and even though he’d been cleaned up, he still looked like a mess. Was he on drugs?

“Did Jacob do that?” Pratt jumped when Eva spoke. He looked at the young girl, almost afraid. She patted his arm. She’d been there. Maybe Jacob will adopt him too. He’d be her loser older brother. 

“It’s okay, he punched me in the face too.” She pointed to the faded bruise down the side of her face. He looked distraught when she spoke. Like he was going to cry. 

“Did he give you a dog too? He gave me Frodo to apologize. He didn’t actually say he was sorry, but I could feel it.” Eva gestured to the judge puppy, who had been given a black bow-tie to wear around his neck. Pratt shook his head and shifted uncomfortably when Frodo walked up to him and barked happily. Did… did he not like dogs? That bastard. 

“Jacob doesn’t like me.” He said in a quiet tone. He was acting weird, she belatedly noticed. Whenever she had interacted with Pratt in the past he was usually over confident and kind of a douche. But he was all timid and quiet now. Jacob punching him must have really messed him up. What a weeny. He flinched every time Frodo barked and moved back whenever he got too close. At some point he had been pushed far enough away that she easily slipped off towards where Phoebe was getting ready.

Eva came upon the building she’d been given her fittings in. As she reached for the door, she saw John rounding the corner. She let out a scandalized gasp, pointing at him. He froze in place, looking behind himself, confused. She ran towards him yelling. John looked around, mildly upset that this child was pointing at him. 

“You can’t be here! You can’t see the bride before the ceremony!” She shouted, shoving him away. He didn't move. John rolled his eyes, trying to push her away. Only to be slapped at. 

“I need to speak with her. That’s just a silly supersti-” Eva glared up at John, genuinely upset. Did he  _ not _ want to be happy and in love for the rest of forever? How much of a dumbshit was he? Did he want to get divorced? Was Phoebe not good enough for him? Phoebe was the world! If that bastard couldn't see that she would tell on him. Joseph would do something about this. Snitches get stitches but she had a killer dog so she was going to tell anyway. 

“It’s bad luck! It’ll doom your marriage!” She hissed. John put his hands up and backed away from Eva. This kid was crazy. 

“Fine, fine.” He huffed, no use arguing with his brother’s child bride. Eva walked backwards towards the door, not taking her eyes off of him until he was out of sight. She waited an additional few seconds before turning around and slipping into the dressing room. The door quietly clicked shut. Everyone was too busy getting ready to notice her. Both Rooks were in matching sky blue dresses, while Faith was wearing one that was a darker shade, more like a navy. Finally a color other than white. Thank god, she wouldn’t have to gouge her eyes out. They all were so pretty, she wanted to die. She hoped that she could be that pretty when she grew up. Pretty like Phoebe, and the Rooks. Her face turned red thinking about how pretty they all were. Women were all so nice, and pretty, except Nancy. The dresses were long, floor length skirts with a sweetheart neckline and a single, swooping shoulder strap. Open back and a slit at the leg that made it even easier for them to move around. Alice’s hair was curled and left down, while Bea had her tied back in a short ponytail. Faith’s hair was in a french braid, tossed over her shoulder.

Phoebe was in a white, ballgown style dress with a sweetheart neckline, long train and no sleeves or straps. It was a white silk dress over layers of tulle and decorated over the skirt with white lace and intricate beading all over the bodice. There was a blue sash that crossed over her left shoulder and wrapped around her waist. It was held in place with a large airplane pin. Her hair was curled at the bottom and had a crown of braids at her temples.

Cooper was wearing a suit. It was black with a blue tie and pocket square thing. She watched him put the veil on Phoebe’s head. None of them had noticed her yet, so she slipped out as easily as she slipped in. Cooper didn’t look as happy as she would have expected. Did he not like John or something? Was it because their parents weren't there and he had to hand Phoebe off?

She made her way back around the compound to see the progress with the venue. They’d really busted their asses to get it to look nice and like it wasn’t a rush job done in just a few hours. Very impressive all things considered. There was a white gazebo type structure with a podium, and a long white carpet that stretched down between the rows of benches. Every few feet there were tall stakes in the ground. Each row had one long, floral garland tacked to each of the posts. A few of Joseph’s flock were scattering white flower petals around the pews. They really went all out, huh? This place almost looked nice.

Eva jumped when a hand came to rest on her shoulder. Joseph smiled down at her, wearing a ugly, ill fitting grey suit that didn’t compliment the color theme they had going on at all. Didn’t the old women make him a new suit? He also still had his hideous yellow sunglasses on, and his hair in that shitty bun. He didn’t even try. Did he hate John? She frowned up at him, making his smile falter. He hated john. 

“Is something wrong, Eva?” He asked, he almost sounded nervous.

“Your hair needs to be fixed, your suit clashes with the color scheme and your glasses are distracting.” She listed them one by one. He opened his mouth to speak but stopped when she reached up and took the aviators off his face. She gestured to the nearest bench. She wouldn’t let him ruin Phoebe’s wedding by looking like shit. Phoebe deserved better. 

“I can’t fix your ugly suit, but I can fix your hair.” Eva said. Once he was seated, she took his hair down. His hair didn’t feel gross surprisingly. He washed it. She was wrong, maybe he did love his brother. Maybe he did bathe. She shook it out, so she could retie it. He had to bite back the obscene sound that clawed at his throat when her nails gently scratched at his scalp. She pulled his hair back into a ponytail, then wrapped it into a bun that actually looked nice. She hummed as she worked her magic. She knew how this worked. She watched Queer Eye. Well, man buns were stupid all together, but she tried. This was a wedding after all. All in all the encounter lasted all of three minutes. Once she finished, she stepped around the bench and put his sunglasses in his shirt pocket. Joseph stood when Eva began walking away and cleared his throat.

“Thank you.” He said, trying to keep his voice steady. She couldn’t know of his sinful thoughts. 

“You’re welcome.” She called back, now looking for Frodo. Was he still bullying Pratt? Those two got along so well. 

She found him a few minutes before the ceremony was supposed to start. Pratt had been sitting on the roof of one of the buildings, with Frodo barking on the ground below. After picking up her puppy, she and the deputy made their way back to the venue. Eva was seated up front, where the family of the groom was supposed to go. Which was weird. She’d known Phoebe longer. But then again, Jacob was his best man, Faith was the maid of honor and Joseph was officiating the marriage. Did they  _ have _ any other family? Were they orphans too? John needed her for moral support so here she will sit. Guess they were all a bunch of orphans. Actually, wasn’t Phoebe adopted by Cooper’s parents? She was an orphan too! If there was a God, he had one hell of a sense of humor. Were the other members of Joseph’s flock also all orphans? Was this a very weird production of Annie? That sounded nice. She still was iffy on John though, fellow orphan or not. 

Music began to play and everyone looked to see Phoebe walking down the aisle, arm in arm with Cooper. Her veil was down and her bouquet was made up of those white flowers that were everywhere and some smaller blue flowers. Forget-me-nots maybe? It looked pretty. More white flower petals were scattered around as Phoebe came closer to the altar. It was really nice for how low the budget was. When she got there, she tried to join John and Joseph under the gazebo, but Cooper wouldn’t let her go. What an attention hog. 

“Coop.” The bride gripped his hand in reassurance. He was pretty convinced he was her dad, huh? Weird. Well, he let go and took his seat in the pews, death in his eyes when he looked at John and his smug grin. Guess he really didn’t like John after all. That was fair. John was a loser and a nerd. He didn’t deserve Phoebe. 

Then Joseph started speaking and Eva zoned out again, idly petting Frodo. She had heard this kind of stuff plenty of times on tv. Her mind wandered as she looked around the venue. Did Phoebe have an ex who would dramatically object to the wedding? It happened in Shrek. She sighed, probably not. The best she would get would be Cooper. It was going to be boring. She just sat there as Joseph prattled on. At least it was a really nice day. They had good timing with the wedding planning. The sun was bright and there were no clouds to be seen. Birds were chirping pleasantly outside. It couldn’t be more perfect. Wonder how long ago they picked today? Wasn’t it like, a Thursday in September? But since when were they engaged? Didn’t Phoebe think John had cheated on her? Eva guessed that he actually hadn’t since they were getting married. Plus, they were having a baby. They were probably going to be a happy family.

Then Cooper stood abruptly, probably at the prompt for objections. Yes! Do it! She needed some drama to get her through the reception. He was quickly pulled back down by Pratt, a fearful look on his face. What a cop-out. Without any objections, John kissed Phoebe and most of the audience cheered and clapped. Except for Cooper, who sat stewing in his rage. Same bro, this was some bullshit! Eva tried to be more excited. Homeless people threw flower petals from nearby roofs, the wind carrying them to fall over the wedding party. Frodo jumped from her lap and took off after some of the flower petals. Everyone stood and began to disperse to the reception area, save for the Seeds and the bridal party. Ugh, this was going to take  _ forever. _

A few of the flock approached Joseph with a camera. Not one of those normal cameras. No this was some professional movie making shit. Where did they get that? Did they hire that director that was making a porno in the Henbane? Is that where all the money for the wedding went? Were they filming this whole thing? Like a home video? Or were they streaming it? Wasn’t technology bad though? Aren’t they some kind Amish? That was a part of Joseph’s teachings, wasn’t it? She could have sworn he’d gone off about social media during one of his services. He’d said that was why she couldn’t have a phone, TV or Xbox anyway. Whatever. Where had Frodo gone to?


	22. Nancy's demise

Joseph stood in front of the camera and spoke like he was addressing his flock. He was front and center in the frame. In the background, his family was fully visible, though they didn’t acknowledge the camera, just going about their day. Phoebe was holding John’s hands in her’s and the two were speaking, while Cooper glowered at them. Jacob stood next to his baby brother, listening to the conversation and seemingly added nothing. Alice and Bea were sitting in the pews with Faith, chatting amongst themselves. This would have looked nice if they didn’t know they were cultists.

“Brothers and sisters, today we celebrate the holy union of our Baptist and one of the Hope County Sheriff’s Department’s deputies. God smiles on everyone this day. This is proof that anyone can come to see the light if shown the love and patients that God needs of us. Peace is on the horizon, but the Collapse is fast approaching. We must not slow the Reaping.” Joseph spoke with authority. 

Eva walked into frame, clearly looking for something. She didn’t even notice the camera. Joseph’s arm shot out, pulling her close to him. She looked startled and looked worriedly from the camera to the man next to her. He put his hand around her waist and held her still next to him. She looked mildly uncomfortable, refusing to look at the camera. She opened her mouth, likely to speak, only for Joseph to move his hand from her waist to her mouth. He held it there for only a moment, letting her know he didn’t want her to speak, before his hand dropped back down to her waist. She stood there silent. 

“John will not be the only of our family to bound before God. Another union is in the works, so that we might be more readily prepared for the upcoming days when god will salt the earth, and we will take refuge.” Eva looked up at Joseph, clearly surprised. She looked freaked out by what he was saying, but she stayed silent. 

“If God wills it, my hope is that all of my family will be bound before He rains his judgement down upon us.” Eva’s head whipped around, looking behind them. In the background, Cooper audibly punched John. He climbed on top of the youngest Seed, only held back from continuing to hit him by Phoebe. Bits of their yelling was picked up but not well enough to hear what they were saying. Joseph’s eyebrow twitched. A small white canine jumped out from under Phoebe's skirt to leap at John. Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose before turning, picking Alice up, and carrying her off. Bea looked to Faith, who shrugged and blew a green cloud into the blond’s face. Dosing her with Bliss. Looked like a shit show. Joseph was trying to keep his composure. Dodger felt that, even though he wanted that man dead. 

“Frodo!” The girl gasped. Joseph turned around and let out a heavy sigh, letting go of Eva. He looked defeated. She darted towards the brawl and picked up the small wolf puppy that had run from under the bride’s dress. The camera shook, falling to the ground before the feed was cut. The last thing they heard was, what was mostly likely, the beginning of a profanity coming from Joseph. 

The empty blackness of the tv screen reflected Dodger’s face back to him. His head fell forward into his hands, groaning loudly. They were fucked. They were all so, so fucked. Phoebe fucking married one of them. Cooper was probably going to be put down for assaulting John. Poor little Eva had no idea that Joseph intended for  _ her _ to be the next bride. What was worse was that he could feel Thomson hovering over him. His patients were already so, so thin. But the sheriff had told him not to attack Thomson again. Fuck. He didn’t  _ want _ to disappoint Whitehorse so he was going to try not to kill the other man. 

“Why weren’t  _ we _ invited?” Thomson sounded genuinely angry. Dodger tried to block him out. Of course Thomson was more upset about the exclusion than the pile of shit they were stuck in. He ignored Thomson’s ramblings about what he would have worn and the gift he had been prepping. Something about stamps. God, he hated that man. Fucker was sounding like Maleficent. Wait, wasn’t that a baby shower? Ugh. Who cares.

The location of the wedding. Where was that? They were probably going to be celebrating for the rest of the day. The scenery was familiar. But where had he seen it before? He racked his brain but he couldn’t think of where it was. 

“We should crash.” Dodger glared up at Thomson.

“Do  _ you _ know where they are?” He hissed. The other man shrugged and sat next to him, leaning in too close. 

“I think they’re on that island between the henbane and Joseph’s island. Not Dutch’s, the other one.” Thomson started.

“You can see his shitty ass little church in the distance.” The man hissed out, his tone angry and dark. Dodger jumped up.

“Holy shit, you’re right.” He began pacing back and forth. For the first time since shit hit the fan, Thomson was being helpful.

“Okay, okay. We need a plan. We can’t just go in guns ablazing. They’ll just scoop up Eva and take off.” Dodger started mumbling possible plans to himself. Thomson watched as he paced about then grinned. 

“What if we took a shit ton of explosives and-” 

“ _ No _ , Thomson. We could kill Eva and the others.” Dodger chewed on his thumb, wracking his brain for any semblance of what to do. If they could find a way to sneak around and find a weak point in the guard, they could sneak in, kill the Peggies and get out. That was so much easier said than done. It would be like trying to get into one of their bunkers, but worse. Plus, Cooper was their best sniper, Alice was the one who was good at laying traps, and Bea had eagle eyes to spot any nearby enemies.

“She wont get diddled if she’s dead.” He spat out, upset at the immediate dismissal of his plan.

“You don't know that.” They really didn’t know how depraved that man was. This could be some Dr. Carl Tanzler shit. 

“Oh, sorry, you right.” Thomson laughed. 

“We should dismember them for not inviting us. Take them apart piece by piece and feed them to their judges while they’re still alive. Listening to their screams and- ” Thomson kept talking as he followed Dodger to the jail’s armory gesturing wildly. He started collecting anything they might need to storm the wedding venue. He wasn’t paying Thomson any mind. 

“... Then we leave his brother’s desecrated remains in front of Joseph’s dying, paralyzed body. Good way to end a wedding. That's what my Babushka always said!” Thomson finished proudly. The fuck was he blabbering on about? Dodger had been carrying out an arm full of guns and bullets when he was caught by the sheriff.

“Where are you off to?” He asked. Thomson walked past them, going to get the car.

“We might know where Eva is, and the others. We gotta go.” Whitehorse’s eyes lit up. He took some of the load his deputy was carrying, the two took off towards the parking lot. Thomson had started the car and sat himself in the passenger seat. Dodger climbed into the driver’s seat, and Whitehorse got into the back. The weapons and ammunition tossed in the trunk.

“Road trip!” Thomson yelled. Sharky was rubbing off on him. Oh no, phrasing, Dodger tried to get that image out of his mind. 

Dodger slammed on the gas, following the directions he was given. Whitehorse knew the county like the back of his hand. Better than any GPS. Even if he’d lived here for forever, it was still impressive that he knew the fastest route to any given location. Saying he was hyped was probably not the right way to describe how he was feeling, but it was the best he had. This nightmare was close to coming to an end. They’d rescue Eva, and the other deputies and kill the cult leaders. All of them. They were the judge, jury and executioner. No trial, just death. Especially Joseph. Fuck that guy. If they could only grab Eva and run, well, the others could figure things out for themselves. Especially Phoebe. That air headed ditz made that fucking bed for herself and she would lay in it. The only person he really felt bad for was Cooper. Cooper beating the shit out of John at the reception just cemented the fact that man didn't want to be there. Everyone else, fuck them, they sucked. Horny bastards, the lot of them. Letting people die for a bit of dick… Or vagina in Bea’s case. 

There were only a few Peggies out and about. He assumed that most of them were watching the wedding or had been in attendance. What a fun reception that must be. Just a bunch of unwashed Peggies with their equally unwashed leader. That was fine. It meant they could get there faster. He hated to admit it, but with Thomson in the passenger seat, they didn’t need to worry about most of the Peggies that they did come across. He was a good shot, and while he would normally be thankful, it was Thomson and that sonofabitch should have been fighting from day one.

Then they came across a blockade. One Peggie ended up under their car while the three men got out to kill the others and blew up the trucks blocking the road. The things Thomson yelled at the dying Peggie were things he would never repeat, or unhear. Where had he learned those things? Like Addie was so fond of saying, it didn’t last very long, like Hurk Sr. The Peggies went down easy, and one stick of dynamite was all they needed to get rid of the trucks. A groaning from behind caught their attention. They looked to see an elderly woman climbing out from under the car. Thomson watched the woman like a cat ready to pounce. 

Nancy. It was fucking Nancy. Before Dodger or Whitehorse could even register that the cunt that handed the sheriff’s granddaughter to Joseph Seed on a silver platter was in front of them, Thomson lunged at the hag. He cackled as he pounced, the bloodcurdling scream that came out of that woman almost made them feel bad. The sounds of cracking bones and popping joints filled the air when the screams subsided. It didn’t take long for the deputy to subdue the elderly woman. Dodger was expecting there to be blood as Thomson turned around. That he mauled and ate the woman, in a mockery of what Jacob did to his prisoners. 

But when the feral man turned there wasn’t a speck of blood on him. He had a calm air to him that was deeply concerning. Nancy was gagged and tied up. Where had he gotten the rope? Thomson took a dramatic bow. 

“Now if you don't mind I will be taking my leave.” He looked up at them with bloodthirsty eyes, daring them to deny him his prey. All Whitehorse could do was nod. They numbly watched the man drag her away, kicking and screaming into the trees. Suddenly the muffled screaming stopped after a nasty cracking sound. Silently, the two men agreed to continue without him and leave Nancy to his nonexistent mercy. They climbed back into the car, taking off down the road, one deputy lighter.

Thomson dragged Nancy deep into the trees, slamming her limbs against any sturdy trunks they came across. Whipping her back and forth like a rag doll. She had passed out but that didn’t mean he couldn’t hear her pain. The way her bones and joints popped and cracked excited him beyond belief for what was to come. His giddiness was bubbling up inside him. She was so…  _ Audible _ . There was so much he had planned for this woman. This was going to be fun. So,  _ so _ much fun. He giggled as he dropped her onto the ground and began dragging her by the hair. Some of it came out in chunks. He shoved it into his pockets to use later for something. No one liked receiving gifts with human hair. Dodger would hate whatever he made him. But adding Nancy’s hair would make it worse. That was what he was after. He easily threw her to the ground when they came to a clearing. So many  _ options _ where to start first? He tilted his head back and forth looking at her from different angles. 

His head was swimming with the possibilities! It was overwhelming in one of the most delicious ways. But to have the most fun she would have to be awake. He decided he was going to start by crushing her knee under his boot. She woke up with a muffled scream. Oh, he forgot to take the gag out. So sad. But her knee gave so easily. Like an icy snow. Similar sound and the exact same satisfaction. Her kneecap must have been a fine powder by the time he picked his foot back up. 

“Welcome back.” He purred as he watched her sob in pain. Tears ran down her wrinkled face. 

“Don't waste all your tears at once.” He said. He knelt down next to her, putting a hand gently on her cheek, making her look at him. 

“I don’t want you getting dehydrated as we play.” She looked him in the eye and she froze. She was staring into the eyes of the devil. He saw her sins, he saw her misdeeds and he was here to punish her. The devil was an absolutely hysteric thing laughing and screaming about what he would do to her. His voice would turn one’s blood to ice if you heard it on a dark night. He would have bouts of calm, where he purred and sounded almost human. Now incapacitated, Nancy took to begging. Attempting to appeal to what little humanity might still be lingering inside the possessed man. Perhaps that was her mistake. 

“Oh, oh, that's so rich that you think you could survive this.” He wiped tears from his eyes as he laughed. He stretched and looked at her with all the humor leaving him. 

“You’re quite the sinner Nancy. What’s to be done about that?” He leaned over her, figuring out where to strike first. He took her left hand in his and started looking at her palm. 

“You very much have fire hands Ms. Nancy. I’ve noticed that ever since we started working together. Short fingers, long palm, no empathy, but motivated by their own desires. Kinda like John. A piece of shit. You’ve such shitty fire hands. All the bad qualities, none of the good.” He looked more at her palm and started tracing the lines with his knife. 

“Shallow heart line huh? That must have been a bummer. Lets fix that!” He dug the knife into her flesh and traced the line from her index to her pinky. He kept rambling about the lines of her hand, some good, some bad, she didn't care what he was saying as he carved up her hand. When he saw she wasn’t paying attention to him and only the pain he stabbed his knife into her thigh and left it there. She cried out in pain. 

“Have you ever been married, Ms. Nancy?” He asked. She didn't respond. 

“Oh come now, it’s just an innocent question.” He said as he inspected each of her long bony fingers. 

“Have. You. Been. Married?” He asked again but this time slowly wiggling her left ring finger. When she only whimpered and sobbed he let out an annoyed sigh. 

“Nancy.” He sang, dragging out the last syllable. 

“I’m getting angry.” He sang again. 

“I haven't.” she whispered out.

“What was that?” the devil mocked. 

“I haven't been married.” She said louder. 

“You weren’t married? Not even at thirteen? How about that?” He kept her hand in his grip and pulled the knife out of her leg. Nancy began to panic, her heart racing, her breath quickening. Thomson petted her hand and shushed her like a scared animal.

“Sh, shh, shhh. It's ok Nancy.” She felt the blade touch the base of her ring finger. She started to plead again.

“It’s not like you need this.” He said as he sliced through it. Birds flew away as she screamed deep in the woods with no one but the devil to hear. He looked at the rest of her fingers and settled on her index finger.

“You’ve been to John’s… Baptisms a lot haven’t you? I can tell.” He tilted his head as he looked at her finger. She tried to pull her hand away but was too weak.

“Pretty short, full of self doubt aren’t ya?” He pressed hard on the pad of flesh just below where her finger started so that it began to hurt. 

“Hmmm, You’ve probably caused all sorts of problems in your little cult huh? Too vain to just blindly follow. Too proud to confess your sins to the father huh? I hear ya. He’s kind of a cunt if you don't mind me saying. I wouldn’t confess my sins to him either.”

“The Father wouldn’t hear the sins of a devil, or a faggot like you.”

“You shouldn’t insult the man in charge of what fingers you keep.” He scolded, and with the same knife, he sliced off her index finger. 

“Your Saturn finger is nice though. You’ve got a lot of ambition, Ms. Nancy. Too bad you’re not tactful enough for it. Let's shorten, it shall we?” There went her middle finger. He must have been done because he dropped her hand. She pulled her marred hand close and cradled it to her chest. 

“Little Eva has a dog now, right? Frodo? I wonder if it’ll eat these.” He waved three of her fingers at her before placing them in his pocket. He stood up and stretched again. 

“Nothing like a good palm reading to get the mind working.” He let her curl up onto a little ball as he paced around her. Nancy began to recite prayers. She prayed that she would be given mercy in the arms of the lord. She prayed for The Father to save her. When Thomson heard that he grabbed her and pulled her upright by her hair, shoving her against the trunk of a tree. She held her eyes shut tight, refusing to look at him. He backhanded her, busing her lip open and maybe even loosening a tooth. Did she have teeth? Or was it just dentures? 

“Look at me.” He growled. She kept her eyes shut. He hit her again, harder. 

“LOOK AT ME.” He screamed. Trembling, she opened one eye, just a bit. His face contorted in absolute rage. 

“Your Father won't come looking for you. He’s too busy getting ready to fuck the child offering you gave him to wonder where you wandered off to. Doubt he’ll even notice you’re gone. So, pray all you want but I’m the only one that will hear you.” Thomson threw her head back against the tree as he stood up. He dropped the knife he had been using to the ground and took out a smaller pocket knife. 

“I can help you with your last rites. Does John do that, for your cult? That seems a bit too charitable for him. I’ve seen him carve sins into people. It seems like he’s a bit too into that ya know? Like that whole “yes” kink he’s got going. You think he makes Phoebe say that in bed? I think he does. Your “holy” men are debauched.” He tapped the tip of his knife against her arm as he thought. Cutting at the shoulder seam he removed the sleeve of the shirt. No reason to hurt the shirt, it hadn’t done anything wrong. Except be bought by the worst person. She tried to wiggle away but he grabbed her by the throat.

“Don’t move. Don't you want your sins absolved?” He kept a hand on her throat and just went at carving her sins into her. It was hard to do one handed, but he didn't care if the words looked good. They just had to be legible. The knife was pushed into the meat of her upper arm, making her scream. Slowly, he began carving several words into her. “Judas”, “Cunt”, “Betrayer”, “Whore”, and “Groomer”. He was getting petty at the end and carved “Lazy” because she was terrible and handling the paperwork back at the department. Thomson finally understood why John liked being the baptist. Carving into people was fun. The scent of her blood was intoxicating as it filled the open air around them.

Thomson grabbed Nancy’s bloodied right arm, his fingers digging into the “d” and “s” of her new Judas engraving. He pulled hard, popping her fragile shoulder out from its socket. Her screams were music to his ears, as were the sounds of her breaking body. Nancy was trembling now. Hyperventilating. Oh no, the fun was coming to an end. She wouldn’t last much longer. Time for the finally. 

He grabbed the knife he discarded and pulled Nancy by her injured leg until she was back on the ground. Pressing his knee into her, so that she couldn't move he began to slowly cut into her leg. Back and forth, back and forth. Admittedly, this wasn’t the kind of knife you amputate with. Hell, this probably wasn’t even the best way to do this. But he wasn’t a surgeon and he had no medical background. He didn’t want any. It was far more amusing to just hack at things to see what happened. Nancy screamed and clawed at him until her voice ran out. Her nails broke his skin but it didn’t bother him. He just kept working till he got what he wanted. A severed leg! Surely he could do something with this. So many possibilities! 

She had stopped struggling but was still alive. He wasn’t going to just leave her here to bleed out. He wanted to kill her. See the life drain from her eyes. He moved her chin back and exposed her throat. One clean slice was all it took. Human life was so fragile. He watched his reflection in her eyes. It was kind of sad. She would die believing she met the devil before she would meet him in hell. Oh well. That’s what you get when you feed a kid to a pedophile.


	23. Shit hits the fan

Eva was sat with the family during the reception, next to Joseph. She looked across the way at the deputies. Jacob was supposed to give a best man speech but he kind of just up and disappeared. Alice was gone too. Suspicious. Cooper had been handcuffed to Pratt after he attacked John. It was funny when it was happening but he’d gotten blood on Phoebe’s dress. He’d also broken John’s nose and busted his lip. But hey, now the two of them were twins! She reached up and touched her nose. The bandage had come off, but it was still sore.

Everything had calmed down for the most part since the fight. Now everyone was eating. It was a chicken dish with vegetables. It wasn’t cooked very well. The vegetables were under cooked and the chicken was rubbery. Did Jacob cook this? It was terrible! Only someone as concomitant as him could screw it up this bad! The actual wedding itself was pretty cute, but this reception sucked. Phoebe threw the bouquet and it landed on Eva’s head. She missed how pleased Joseph looked. She didn’t want it. She was too young to get married next. Cooper shrieked and started sobbing when that happened. Pratt tried to console him. Did he want to catch it? Were he and Pratt that far into their relationship? What other secrets does Cooper have? Is he secretly a woman, worried about her biological clock and desperate to be married? Wasn’t Phoebe basically his kid already? Did Cooper want more kids? Or was Cooper planning on disowning her for marrying John? In that case she’d just give it to him. She understood. 

Eva took the bouquet off her head and stood up. She rounded the tables and presented the bushel of flowers to Cooper. He stared at her, a dead far off look in his eyes. He numbly reached out and took the “prize” from her.

“I think you and Pratt will be very happy together.” She said, Frodo barked at her heels, giving his blessing.

“He thinks so too.” Eva picked Frodo up and walked back to the table where Joseph sat. He had an odd look on his face. Was he mad that she gave the bouquet to Cooper? It was just a bunch of flowers. What did it matter? Did he want them? Who was he going to marry? Nancy, the only other person she knew the name of? Joseph needed better self esteem.

“They say that the person who catches the bouquet will be the next to be married.” He said leaning back in his chair, eyes fixed on her. Eva shrugged. She was thirteen, she was way too young to get married anyway. What a party-pooper. He was just jealous because he was the only one single, if her theory about Jacob and Alice was true. 

“Cooper seemed like he wanted it more.” She said, sitting with Frodo on her lap. Joseph raised an eyebrow at her.

“Don’t you want to wed?” He asked, there was a weird tone to his voice, he almost sounded hurt. Which was unsettling. Again, she shrugged.

“I dunno. Maybe someday. But I’m still just a kid.” She said, Frodo yapped in agreement. Now he looked almost angry. What was his problem? 

“Eva, my dear-” The sound of a crash cut him off. Everyone turned to see a car, covered in blood sitting not far from the reception venue. Thomson was on top of it. He flung what he was holding at them.

Your wedding gift, John!” He screamed at the top of his lungs dramatically! 

“Holy fucking shit, he killed Nancy!’ Eva shouted excitedly, bouncing up and down. Even dead, Nancy's bones and joints made the most nauseating sounds. Crack, pop, snap. Joseph was caught between scolding Eva for her language and processing what was happening. She didn’t care, this was the  _ best day _ ! This made up for Phoebe marrying that loser. As the Peggies began to swarm the vehicle, Dodger and the sheriff stepped out. Shooting them down one by one. Eva yelled in excitement at seeing her only living relative. Thomson threw himself into the fray with just a hunting knife and a pistol. It was cool, maybe Jacob would teach her how to do that. Eva’s eyes lit up upon seeing Whitehorse, her spirits lifting.

“Grandpa!” She called out to him and began running towards the gun fight that was happening, ignoring her survival instincts. She didn’t care how dangerous it was, or why Joseph’s flock were attacking them. She wanted her grandpa. Joseph grabbed Eva by the arm and began pulling her with him, away from the sheriff. She struggled to get out of his grip. No one would stand between her and her grandpa. Not even a holy man. 

Then the bombs began to fall. The sky turned red and angry winds began to savage the county. The trees were set alight, fires spreading. That didn’t bode well for Phoebe and John’s marriage. God was mad, probably at how much of a loser John was. 

Thomson hoisted Nancy’s corpse up and threw her at Joseph, knocking him over. She was missing a leg. Even better! Dodger took the time to run out. He scooped Eva up, Frodo following behind them as he tossed her into the vehicle. Joseph was dragged away from the deputy’s car, despite his struggling. His flock, intent on keeping him alive, even at the cost of him losing Eva. Of losing his wife for the second time. Eva didn’t hear what he was yelling, her only concern was her dog, who was still outside. 

“Frodo!” When Eva sobbed, Dodger picked up the judge puppy and chucked it in the back with her. He slammed the door shut and got in the driver’s seat, cursing in multiple languages. The sheriff, in the passenger seat, had his attention fully on his grandbaby. He told her it would be alright, that they would all be okay. She clutched her dog, crying. Afraid and confused.  _ Why were bombs falling from the sky?! _ The sheriff held Eva’s hand in his, squeezing it firmly to help ground her.

“We’re going to a friend of mine, alright? We’re gonna be just fine.” The desperation in his eyes betrayed the calm of his voice. Eva nodded trying to stop the tears. She wanted to believe her grandfather, but this all felt like a nightmare. Eva screamed when an entire flock of birds fell from the sky, pelting the car with their corpses. God  _ was _ mad at John! Is this what happened when people had children out of wedlock? Was that why her parents were dead? No TV show she watched had  _ this _ happen.

Dodger was forced to swerve between fallen trees, fires, exploding vehicles and terrified animals. He knew the way to Dutch’s bunker and he was damn determined to get them there safely, even if the sporadic moving of the car tossed her around like a toy. Something in Eva knew her grandpa wouldn’t want to hear that Joseph had been right about this, the end of the world. But that’s what this felt like, and it was terrifying. She just held onto Frodo and cried into his fur. 

When they finally pulled up to the bunker, her grandpa ripped the car door open, picked her up and carried her down into the shelter. Fight or flight probably was kicking in right about now. She had never seen him run so fast. He didn’t care that she wouldn’t let go of Frodo. He cared that his little grandbaby Eva was safe. Dodger followed them in, shutting and securing the heavy door behind them. Once the door was locked they all let out a breath of relief. They were safe and that's all that really mattered. She would grieve Phoebe and Jacob’s deaths later. 

Dutch greeted them by way of showing the sheriff to the couch, where he could sit with his grandchild and comfort the crying girl. Once they were seated, Frodo jumped from Eva’s lap and curled up next to her and Whitehorse.

“I thought we were gonna di-i-ie!” The tween sobbed. Her grandfather took off his uniform shirt and wrapped it around her. She leaned into him. As much as everything sucked it was nice to have her grandpa back and to see the desecrated corpse of that bitch Nancy.

“It’s okay, sugar-plum. You’re safe. Ain’t no one gonna hurt you no more.” He murmured, holding her tight. He didn’t know what, if anything, had happened to her while she was at that monster’s mercy. But she would be safe from him now. 

Dodger collapsed at the base of the stairs and buried his head in his hands. There went his car, and everything else. Actual fucking bombs fell from the mother fucking sky. All his friends and family were fucking dead. The only one who would survive is that fucking cockroach, Thomson. God couldn’t even let him have that, could he? He reached to lower his hat over his eyes, only to find that it was gone. Welp, he couldn’t have anything. Not a single thing. He choked back a sob for the countless that would never make it through the storm that raged outside. Goodbye to the Rye’s, Hurk, Sharky, Jerome, Eli, Mary May, Je… Jess. Dodger squeezed his eyes tighter and rested his head against his knees. Fuck. This sucked and he couldn’t do anything about it this time. He was never getting laid. 

The deputy looked up when he felt a light kick to his boot. There was a God, because Jess was staring down at him, and he could only blink away the tears that were falling from his eyes. She offered him her hand, to help him stand and he took it. The tears kept falling. 

“You alright, dep?” Jess asked, leading him to the infirmary Dutch had in his bunker. He must have looked like a loser, just crying. 

“I feel a little better knowing you’re safe.” He muttered quietly, he didn’t expect much, or any, response. But she squeezed the hand he realized she was still holding. He leaned against her shoulder, his tears soaked up by her clothes. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. She just needed to be there and be alive, and she was. 

It wasn’t necessarily that they were waiting for things to calm down before they began trying to radio for other survivors, it just worked out that way. Jess gave Eva some of her clothes to change into and they set up a corner for Frodo to do his business in. Dodger and the sheriff took turns showering and actually eating, something neither of them had been able to do since the reaping began. It was somber but nice that they didn't have to fight anymore. If only it was under better circumstances. Not even a lot better, just a bit better would have been nice. 

The first ones Dutch managed to contact were the Ryes, and Dodger felt better almost immediately. The fact they weren’t the only ones to survive gave him some hope. They were damn fine people and didn’t deserve any of the shit that happened. Nick and Kim had managed to get to a prepper bunker with Jerome. He had delivered their baby. It was a girl, which didn’t surprise anyone. They named her after the plane, which surprised fewer people. That bunker would be fine. 

John’s bunker was the next one to pick up their frequency. He assured them that Phoebe, Cooper and Pratt would be safe with him and the Peggies that resided in his torture chamber. Despite that, Cooper could be heard in the back the entire time. He was less than pleased to be trapped with the Seed for seven years. If all four, er, five of them made it that long, he’d be surprised. Fuck, Phoebe was going to have a baby in that place. Eva was real upset that John was alive and blamed him for the collapse. Cooper was heard in the background agreeing. That bunker would be a shit show, glad he wasn’t there. 

Then the Boshaw-Drubman bunker checked in with Dutch. They had all managed to get to safety, with Thomson. Dodger held back an irritated groan.  _ Of course _ Thomson was with them and alive. What a joke. Maybe he would die. That would make him feel better. At least he had super limited contact with him. 

Eli radioed in to let them know that he and his whitetails had lost a few people, but all in all they had managed to save a good number of people. His frequency was booted off by Jacob’s bunker, where Alice told them that she was fine and that somehow Hudson was also there. Which was interesting. Why would they move her there? Whatever. Maybe Jacob would be cannibalized. If all the seeds died in their bunkers he wouldn't be sad. Apparently, Eva would be, just with Jacobs death though. 

Faith’s bunker was eerily quiet for a few seconds after they managed to find the frequency. Then she told them she had Bea and would not be giving her back. Then the communication cut out. They would be fine. 

The last communication they’d made was with Joseph’s bunker, though it was more like a radio station, where they couldn’t speak with him, but they could hear him. It was the fucking worst. And he was  _ pissed _ that Dodger and the sheriff had taken Eva. Saying that “A lamb had been stolen away by wolves.” Everything was still calming down. It was too soon to tell Eva that Joseph wanted to do horrible things to her. She was safe, with them and no one was getting in or out for a long ass time. Telling her about  _ that _ could wait. Especially since she’d be taking the surrogate place of his actual little sister. Minnie was no doubt dead. They had seven years to process what they went through. Things would be ok. 

  
  


Eventually. 


	24. Epilogue

Seven. Long. Years. They were trapped in that godforsaken bunker for seven years. Eva had seen more of her new housemates than she’d ever needed or wanted to. She’d walked in on Jess and Dodger  _ progressing _ their relationship more than once. Walked in on Dutch while he was in the shower, and her grandfather had the unfortunate task of telling her about how the nice priest man she met as a kid wanted to molest her. Too much. It was too much for a teen girl with no privacy. She started writing out what she had gone through when Dutch had given her an empty notebook. He told her it was something to do while they waited. He probably thought it would be a good way to process what happened to her. It was. It was a bit after that when she told them about the fucked up shit Nancy pulled when she shaved her. That had shocked them as much as their shit had shocked her. 

Jess was the lucky one who got to give her the actual sex talk. Honestly she was probably the best pick for the job. It was easy to relate to Jess. She was angry all the time and as a teen Eva understood. It was awkward and cut short when Eva told her she’d already learned everything when she was eleven from being on the internet. One mislabeled fanfiction had done the job just fine. She had then looked it all up herself. Fucking Drarry authors. The rest of their “girl time” was spent with Jess teaching her how to shoot a bow and make arrows. A useful skill Jacob had failed to teach her. At some point during their time stuck in the bunker, Eva had taught Frodo to use the toilet and a variety of tricks that weren’t murder.

Actually, all of them seemed pretty intent on teaching her things. Jess wanted her to be a good hunter, her grandfather was strict with her school work, Dutch taught her how to shoot a gun and Dodger showed her how to defend herself unarmed. It was weird, but it was the closest she’d had to a real family in so long. Just had to have the right conditions of not being able to leave. For the first time in forever, she and grandpa weren’t alone. Jess was a good female role model, whether she would admit it or not. She was strong, smart and even if she had a bad attitude, she had a pretty good moral compass. Plus, as Eva grew up, she had to take some of Jess’s clothes and tailor them so they’d fit her more pear shaped figure. Jess didn’t seem to care much about that and never made any jokes about her being thicc. It was nice. Eva felt loved and like she belonged for the first time in a long time. 

When they were finally set free, none of them traveled far from the bunker at first. They left then went back to the bunker for shelter a lot in the beginning. Everything was weirdly hot pink. It wouldn’t have been her first idea for an apocalyptic setting. But it wasn’t terrible. They could farm. Dodger and her grandpa took the time to teach Eva how to drive, both a car and an ATV. She didn’t suck at it  _ and _ she didn’t need to pay for insurance. Jess and Dutch brought her out to hunt a few times to really test her marksmanship. She wasn’t terrible, but she definitely needed to practice on more moving targets before she could qualify as good. It was still something. Getting her grandpa to agree to let her go out on her own was a different issue. He was still scared from her being kidnapped those years ago. But she promised she would be back. 

Which was  _ wild  _ for her to think about. It made sense of course, in hindsight. Joseph was always really touchy with her and got weird about her not being ready to get married. But she hadn’t ever considered that he’d want to… She’d been a baby for Christ’s sake! The whole experience didn’t feel real. Like it had been some kind of fucked up dream. But here she was, on the back of an ATV, with Frodo running alongside her. He was getting a little chunky and needed the exercise. She wanted to visit the other deputies and she had questions for Jacob and John. Her grandfather insisted that they were just as bad as Joseph, and were on board with him taking advantage of her. But something about that just didn’t add up.

The hope county map Dutch had in his bunker was pretty thoroughly burned into her memory. The landscape was different but everything was still in the same spot. So were the notes he had on the cult leaders. It was difficult for her to reconcile the Jacob and John she’d known with the men they actually were, but even still, she couldn’t see them being okay with Joseph assaulting her when she was so young. She decided to visit John first. The other deputies would act as a good buffer in case things got awkward. Plus, she wanted to see the baby. Of course it wouldn't be an actual baby anymore, but she still wanted to see it. It would be nice to see Phoebe again too after all these years. 

The county was still beautiful, just over grown and really, really green. Eva and Frodo stopped at Seed Ranch. The building was still standing and there was no way John would just abandon the best remaining structure in the county. He was a little bitch like that. She climbed off her ATV a few yards out from the building. She could hear the squealing of children and Cooper scolding someone. So at least he was still alive. Well, if Cooper hadn’t survived neither would they. It was all or nothing and it relied on Cooper. Frodo followed behind Eva as she made her way around the house.

Cooper visibly aged more than anyone. She hadn’t seen anyone else yet, but damn. He had grey hair and stress lines all over his face. Pratt was nearby.  _ Of course _ he was nearby. They were married, weren’t they. The two men were entertaining two little boys. One about six, the other maybe four. The older one had dark hair, the younger one had sandy blond hair and both of them had icy blue eyes, it was just that the older boy had a more vacant look to his gaze. He took after his mother. That alone probably aged Cooper significantly. God help him if any of the others were life that. 

Phoebe walked out of the house with a couple of glasses filled with water. She handed them to Cooper and Pratt while the little boys clung to her legs. That stupid bitch had a baby and then had  _ another one _ . She was the first one to notice Eva. She dropped the tray she’d been holding and gasped her name, getting Cooper and Pratt’s attention. She looked happy to see her. 

“Hey.” Eva said awkwardly, she walked to get closer to them. Phoebe pulled Eva into a tight hug while Cooper and Pratt each wrangled a boy. The kids were lively to say the least. 

“How are you? I’m so glad to see you’re alive!” She said, holding onto Eva’s arms.

“Uh, yeah. You too. How’s life been?” Eva asked, looking curiously at the little boys. The smaller one, the one with blond hair, wacked Pratt in the face. Good. 

“It’s been great!” Phoebe said, smiling bright. She pointed to her boys, first the dark haired one, then the light haired one.

“This is J.J. and this is Victor. Little Rosie is asleep inside with her daddy.” The older woman hummed and took the more rambunctious child from Pratt. Oh, The collapse wasn’t an omen about their marriage. Unfortunate. 

“Little Vicky here looks just like my dad. Nearly gave Jacob a heart attack when he saw him.” She peppered kisses over the small boy’s face. It was good to hear about Jacob. Eva nodded and looked at Cooper, the unasked question hanging in the air.

“I’m not going to leave her and those kids in  _ John’s _ care. That’d just be asking for them to die.” He said, crossing his arms. Eva nodded slowly before looking back to Phoebe. It was true. Cooper probably single handedly kept them all alive. 

“I actually had some questions for John, but I guess I could just get the information from Jacob.” She said. Phoebe nodded.

“John and Rosie both get really cranky when you wake them up.” She hummed. Three. This dumb fucking bitch had three babies at the end of the world. That didn’t seem smart. 

“Is it about Joseph?” Pratt asked, he seemed to be back to normal for the most part, but he got sheepish when he spoke. Eva nodded, picking at her nails.

“Yeah. I wanted to know how much he was aware of.” Phoebe put her son down and put her hand on Eva’s shoulder.

“He knew what Joseph was planning for you, but was doing his best to keep it from happening.” She said, looking sympathetic. Eva frowned. Cooper scoffed.

“So your useless husband wasn’t doing anything.” He said, unamused. Phoebe frowned. 

“Coop, there’s only so much talking to someone like that.” She said. Eva put one hand on Phoebe’s arm and the other on Cooper’s chest. She was definitely going to visit again. 

“Okay. I got what I came for. Thank you. Tell him I said hi. I might come back some time.” With that, Eva turned on her heel and whistled for Frodo to start running. She got on her ATV and took off for the mountains, towards Jacob. 

It was a nice ride, even if she did have to stop and attach a sidecar for Frodo to ride along with her. Apparently, Jacob and Alice were living off on their own together, away from the cult. The cult. She had been abducted by a  _ cult _ and their leader intended on making her his child bride. That was fucking nuts. She tried to shake off the thought. The fresh mountain air blowing through her hair, the sound of nature surrounding her and the nearby waterfalls singing made for an amazing experience. It was nice to be out again. To feel the sun. She pulled up to what was honestly, a pretty well hidden cabin. She cut the engine to her ATV and climbed off of it. Frodo lept out after her, his tail wagging. Did he remember Jacob? She remembered him enough for the both of them.

Eva knocked on the front door to the cabin. There was silence for a few seconds before she knocked again, and again, there was no reply. Were they not home or was Jacob being a grouch? Did he learn how to cook. She would find him dead inside that cabin if he didn’t. 

“Uh, hello? It’s Eva Whitehorse. Are you guys dead?” She hoped not. That would make getting answers harder and also, that would just be a shame. The door opened, a tall, bigfoot looking man stood in the doorway. Eva couldn’t help her smile. It was so good to see him again. 

“Hello.” She said, waving. Frodo barked and lunged at Jacob, tail wagging and tongue lolling out. Jacob caught Frodo while he was in the air and began scratching his ears. He didn’t forget him after all. 

“How you been, pup?” He also aged a lot over the last seven years, rivaling Cooper for the title of old fart.

“I’ve been pretty good. I just had a few questions.” She said awkwardly. Jacob nodded and motioned for her to enter the cabin. It looked pretty normal.  _ Normal _ normal. Not this new normal everyone was living in. They were living in an off the grid cabin. Yes,  _ they _ . Alice came into the room and sat with Jacob and Eva at the table. It almost felt like she was back before the collapse. 

“Okay. This is gonna be weird and awful.” She said, her eyes fixed on the oak table. Jacob snorted.

“I wasn’t going to let Joseph touch you. That’s why I gave you the judge. Keep him away from you.” Eva’s eyes darted up to Jacob, her mouth agape. 

“I got a radio call from Miller earlier. She said you were looking for answers.” Jacob rolled his shoulders. Eva nodded, a smile spreading on her face and a relieved laugh slipping past her lips.

“Yeah, I figured you guys had some standards, cult or no. Thank you for that, by the way.” She said. Jacob shrugged and stood.

“You can come and go as you like. Just don’t bring anyone else with you. Other than him.” He pointed to Frodo, who had placed himself in front of their fireplace and was napping. All that travelling had tired him out, her too. Eva ended up spending the night. It felt like family with them too. It warmed her heart that they felt the same. Alice told her about Bea and Faith going off on their own to live their lives without the cult. They would come around occasionally to visit Alice, but that was as much as they wanted to interact with anyone. Which was fair. 

Come morning, Eva took off with Frodo. She had to get back to the bunker before her grandpa worried himself into a heart attack. Frodo climbed into the sidecar when she started the ATV. Then they were on the road towards home. Her new home anyway. Well, had she had a real home since her parents died? Not really. But she was getting close to having a new one. Her plan was to circle around the county, go from the valley, the mountains, then the henbane on her way back. Unfortunately, the bridge between the henbane and whitetails was out. She clicked her tongue and turned around, looking for another way through. She didn’t want to go through Joseph’s island. She really didn’t. Granted, she could probably kill him with her bare hands at this point. He couldn’t hurt her anymore. She had to bite the bullet and just go. 

Plus she had Frodo and he was actually trained now. What’s the worst that could happen? She hit the gas and they were on their way. At least Nancy was dead. If she looked hard enough maybe she could find that bitch’s corpse. Spit on it, that would make her day. That was probably the second best thing that came from all of this. Frodo was the first, of course. She loved him so much. He was her best friend and she didn’t want to know the average lifespan of wolves. At least the scenery was nice. Everything in the county was  _ gorgeous _ . Despite everything having the shit blown out of it almost a decade ago, it was all so beautiful already. She decided to take a detour. They weren’t terribly far from the bunker, so a little sightseeing couldn’t hurt. She deserved something nice. 

Eva came to a cliff and shut off the ATV. Frodo jumped out and followed after her as she walked towards the edge. The view was breathtaking. She sat there, legs dangling over the side, taking it all in. Frodo curled up behind her, resting. The people she had come to care about were alive, and Nancy was dead. Given the situation she couldn’t ask for more. The breeze was refreshing, she shook her hair out and let the wind make it dance. She laid back and looked up at the bright blue sky. It was still serene and peaceful like before. Eyes closed, she let herself relax. Then she heard something that made her spine tingle. Her eyes snapped open. Down below, Joseph was singing amazing grace. He hadn’t seen her. She gripped her rifle. She and Frodo should just go. Go back to the bunker, and curl up in bed where she was safe. Away from him. 

Instead, she stood and slid down the face of the cliff. Frodo jumped up and fell behind while finding a safe way down. Eva held her rifle in front of her. She wasn’t sure what she was feeling. She wasn’t sure what she was doing. Her hands were trembling. When she got close enough, he turned around. His eyes went wide, the air left his lungs. He aged in those seven years. He was looking at her like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Joseph whispered her name like prayer. Her hands steadied on her rifle. The two staring each other down.

“Eva.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We would like to thank everyone who's gone on this adventure with us. We love and appreciate every kudo and comment we receive, they mean the world to us both! We hope you enjoyed this fic as much as we enjoyed writing it.


End file.
